Bend, but not Break
by bookworm03
Summary: Bookworm is very sorry. She recently got a new computer and does not have the appropriate software on it yet. She's so distraught over this she is talking in third person. Thanks everyone for reviewing!
1. Bliss

**A/N: **_Hey everyone. This is the sequel that I'd been planning on posting for 'You and Me' since quite a few people mentioned in their reviews of that they were still interested in it. This chapter is particularly fluffy but the rest of the story won't be so much…at least not based on the breakdown I came up with… I think for the most part, you should be able to follow this one without having read 'You and Me'…I've tried to incorporate as much of the back story as necessary as the story progresses…_

_Reviews are greatly appreciated! They're definitely what keep me writing… Hopefully you guys enjoy it!_

Chapter One – Bliss

"I'm not stopping the car, Michelle."

Tony and Michelle had been driving for hours, trying to find the hotel they'd booked for the better part of their seven day honeymoon - including drive time. In the midst of their travels they'd been caught in a torrential downpour; vicious enough that it brought every car on the road to a crawl.

Tony had been fuming at mother nature the entire time; furious she had decided to cut into his highly valued, far-too-rare alone time with his new wife. After a lot of coaxing, Michelle convinced him to abandon the highway for the moment and find a place to at least ask for directions.

He finally conceded when she looked at him like _that_; assuring him she'd much rather have the opportunity to live out being married for more than a couple of days. Reluctantly, he'd pulled into gas station and sat idling in the car while Michelle ran in to speak to the attendant.

He was still getting used to the fact that she was his wife when just over a year before she'd been the person he sat a little closer than necessary to in meetings or whose desk he lingered by when the end of the day rolled around and it would've probably made more sense to go home and catch up on some sleep. Before Michelle, spending extra time at work when he didn't have to would never have been worth it…before Michelle.

"We missed the exit." she told him dejectedly, brushing the rainwater from her cheeks. "It's gonna take forever to get back there now...There's an accident going north."

Tony said nothing, but started the ignition; fully prepared to go all night if he had to.

"You can't drive in this weather" Michelle half-pleaded with him to think about the situation logically.

"What else are we gonna do?" he asked dully.

She studied him carefully before responding.

"There's a motel down the street...we could spend the night there-"

"No wife of mine is staying there." He snapped, more at the circumstances than at her. Much to his irritation, Michelle laughed softly.

"I'll live…" she assured him. "Besides, you'll get us both killed if you keep trying to drive in this weather..."

"It's our honeymoon, Michelle!"

"I know..." she rubbed his hand gently. "And we'll get to the hotel tomorrow..."

He remained brooding silently for a moment, considering her proposal carefully.

"Tony…" she soothed again after waiting for a moment or two. "It's only one night..."

Tony sulked, hating the prospect of spending even a second in such a sleazy establishment...on his honeymoon nonetheless!

"Don't you want to come to bed with me instead of driving around some more?" She tried a new approach and twisted around her in seat to rub the back of his neck. He loosened his grip on the gearshift and his eyes closed.

Michelle inched a little closer.

"C'mon honey," she kissed, and then bit, his earlobe. Tony restrained the groan that had formed in the base of his throat as Michelle's fingers traced their way up his inner thigh. Her other hand still rubbed his neck, while she nibbled her way down his jaw.

She grinned, knowing her tactics were working when she caught him biting his lip firmly out of the corner of her eye.

"Alright..."

* * *

They were grateful for every second of the week off together they'd been granted, (something Tony had worked out with Ryan Chappelle months before on the sole condition that they be "reachable" in the event anything happened while they were away). The recent addition of new personnel, and Jack Bauer's agreement to be at work the entire time they were gone, made the vacation possible. Michelle had been pleasantly surprised when one day at work Tony had innocuously mentioned that their four day honeymoon had been extended to seven.

He liked to surprise her like that.

He liked to slip in the mention of it into their everyday routine so it didn't come across like such a huge deal. He wasn't really sure why he did things that way but it could, possibly, have had something to do with how her eyes widened and her mouth hung agape as realization washed over her face.

He had proposed to her like that.

On a walk they'd taken a few minutes before midnight on Christmas Eve while visiting her family clear across the country. He'd worked up the nerve to do it a split second before he actually pulled her aside so as not to give himself time to think.

Now that they were here, on their honeymoon, he had to admit he was pretty damn glad he never gave himself time to think.

His arms were around her the second the room key was locked securely in his hand. She brushed back a few pieces of his dripping hair that had fallen out of place during their dash to the building. He kissed her palm quickly and dragged her to the stairs.

When the door to the room closed Michelle surveyed the damage. The comforters were grungy, there were water stains on the ceiling and she cringed to think of the state of the bathrooms. Tony dropped the one bag he'd grabbed as they made their way inside.

"Hungry?" he asked, realizing he himself was starving. They hadn't eaten a bite since early that morning in anticipation of the meal they would have when they arrived.

Michelle nodded and he exited the room, promising to return with something in a few minutes.

"There wasn't much." he apologized, tossing a small, wet, paper bag onto the bed at Michelle's feet.

She eyed the assortment of packages as they fell out, looking a little disappointed now.

"Romantic, eh?" He said sarcastically when he noticed her face. Beginning to see the humor in the situation for himself, he smirked and lifted the first bag dutifully in his hand. Because really, this could only happen to them…

Michelle laughed and nodded slowly, coming to kneel beside him. One by one each item was held up for inspection and given the nod of approval. There definitely wasn't much… A bag of pretzels each and a couple of granola bars seemed to be the extent of their dinner.

Her eyes fell on the final package.

"Dessert?"

He nodded, his lips twitching in amusement. "I mean, who needs chocolate covered strawberries when we can have a whole cupcake to ourselves..."

She tilted her head to one side, and, grinning, kissed him lightly; her hand resting gently against the back of his neck.

"This isn't so bad..."

He shook his head, brushing his fingertips across her cool cheek.

"Guess not..." he agreed, entirely convinced the only reason for that was the fact that she was sitting beside him.

Suddenly, Michelle was on her feet like a bolt of lightening.

"I just thought of something you forgot..." she told him quickly before rushing out the door, leaving Tony sitting on the bed dumbfounded.

She returned with two white plastic cups and held one out to him.

"Champagne..."

He raised an eyebrow as she thrust the cup into his hand and tapped the brim of her own to it.

"Cheers..." she said dryly before taking a sip and waiting for Tony to follow suit. He did somewhat reluctantly and nearly choked with when he recognized the liquid...

Gingerale.

* * *

The rain continued to pound against the roof of the two-story motel, and Michelle's teeth chattered as she pulled the thin blankets closer to her chin. The broken blow drier meant her hair was still damp, resulting in an unpleasant chill running up and down her back from the instant they'd crawled into bed.

"Damn it." She shuddered quietly, feeling Tony shift beside her before his eyes opened.

"What's wrong?"

"I left my sweater in the car…"

He waited a few seconds before propping himself up on his elbow and leaning over her; slightly exasperated.

"I told you to keep it handy…"

"I know…" She brushed it off. "I guess I meant to stick it in the bag at the last minute…"

He fell back against the pillow with a defeated sigh, before grudgingly kicking off the blankets and rising from the bed. Wordlessly, he threw on his clothes…

"Don't worry about it…" she protested, anticipating what he intended to do. He ignored her.

"Tony honestly leave it, I'm-"

The door closed behind him; cutting her off mid-sentence.

Michelle lay silently until he returned with her sweater tucked inside his shirt to prevent it from getting soaked. He himself was drenched once again.

"Here…" he tossed the sweater at her before stripping out of his clothes and making his way back to the bed.

She was about to tell him he shouldn't have bothered and apologize for forgetting in the first place when he leaned over and pressed a chaste kiss to her cheek.

"Get to sleep. I want to be out of here first thing tomorrow."

After staring at him for a moment she pulled on the sweater and lifted his arm to make room for herself. He raised an eyebrow as she pillowed her head on his chest and wrapped her arm across him. His own hand came to rest on around her shoulders and he brushed the hair away from her face; muttering in a seemingly irritated voice about remembering to listen to him in the first place from then on…

The next morning dawned bright and sunny. The remnants of the storm still remained behind as the leaves of trees and even parts of the sidewalks were still wet. When dressing that morning they heard something about roads being flooded a few miles inland but otherwise, it was as though nothing had really happened.

Neither Tony nor Michelle could even be bothered devoting any amount of time to a proper breakfast. They were out the door as soon as the sun had risen.

* * *

Michelle flopped backwards on the bed, eyes closed. In sharp contrast to the one they'd spent the previous night in, this room was covered with a thick, fluffy, impeccably clean duvet; much more to her liking. There were at least ten pillows on the bed that were probably each three times thicker than the one they'd slept on at the motel and Michelle had a sinking suspicion that all the appliances, (blow drier included) would work.

"Finally..."

She felt the mattress shift and heard Tony chuckle as a hand brushed the hair off her forehead.

Reality starting to sink in, Michelle rolled onto her side with a rather large, stupid grin on her face. Tony grinned back before leaning in for a kiss. With a soft sigh, Michelle reciprocated, tongue parting his lips and falling back again, this time with his body pinning her down.

After a minute, he lifted himself up and proceeded across the room. Michelle watched with a smirk from the bed as he moved the "Do Not Disturb" sign from the inside to the outside of the door; laughing at the notion of how much of a cliché they were at that moment and unable to imagine herself caring less.

It was their honeymoon. They'd never even had a weekend away, _alone _together in the entire time they'd been dating, let alone a glorious, seven days. It was _their_ honeymoon filled with _their_ "Do Not Disturb" signs, strawberries dripping with champagne, and even, (if Michelle _really_ felt daring and spontaneous), herself dressing up in that little wine-colored negligee her best friend Alicia had pressed into her hands at the last minute as part of a wedding present "just in case".

It still hadn't registered fully that they were married and she had a feeling it wouldn't until they were back to their daily routine once again. As much as they'd acted like a married couple in the months since engagement, actually _being_ married was an entirely different story.

Tony was in the process of filling two glasses with freshly chilled champagne, when a pair of arms snaked around his waist.

"Hey," Michelle smiled lopsidedly, nuzzling her face into the collar of his shirt.

He studied her mass of curls for a few seconds before tilting her head back and pressing another light kiss against her lips.

"C'mon…" he nudged her out of the bathroom and inclined his head towards the bed. She frowned suspiciously.

"So this is how it's gonna be from now on? All you have to do is grunt and point-"

Her lack luster protests were cut off when his hand slid round the back of her head and their mouths fused together one more time…

"Don't kid yourself sweetheart; that's how it's always been…"

* * *

Tony closed his eyes as the cool ocean breeze played across his face and the sound of waves gently lapping on the beach filled his ears. _This has to be heaven…_ He thought blissfully as he adjusted the position of his sunglasses on his nose and leaned back in the lounge chair he'd been occupying for most of the afternoon. Michelle was napping peacefully in a hammock beside him, a beach towel covering her upper body and the book she'd been reading splayed half-open across her chest. The nap was to make up for the lack of sleep they'd gotten the previous night and to ensure she was refreshed for the similar kind of evening they would likely have as soon as the sun went down. She preferred the shade supplied by the trees she gently rocked between; afraid that if she fell asleep in the sun she would end up burned or severely overheated. He, on the other hand, would sit in the sun all day if he could…

He was oh so very tempted to pull his new wife into his lap. After all, he was already nice and toasty and he could see goosebumps all over her bare legs. It was the kind of thing a husband would do, and any excuse for them to cuddle up under that towel of hers was, as far as Tony was concerned, a good one. He was more than glad for the privacy of their little corner of the beach; it meant he could do things like that away from prying eyes, (which was, of course, the best part of their honeymoon to begin with). Plus, she might refer to him as her "husband" again if she really wanted to make his stomach churn and his head spin.

That settled it. He pulled himself upright, lifted the book from her lap and gently lowered himself into the hammock. Her lids fluttered open and took a minute to adjust to the sun before she shifted the distribution of weight to avoid sending them both toppling into the sand below. Once he was settled she pulled him closer, and nestled into his delightfully hot chest.

"You're freezing, baby." He noted, pulling her further into his warmth.

"No, I'm not." She assured him with a yawn as they swayed gently side to side. "You've just been lying in the sun too long."

"Still tired?" he asked, once they'd both stopped wiggling around in an attempt to find a good position.

"Mhm, a little." She managed to control her smirk, knowing he'd feel it against his skin. "My _husband _kept me awake all night."

"And he's planning on doing it again tonight." He gave her fair warning and slid his fingertips underneath the strap of her bathing suit that crossed her back. "After he takes you out to dinner and you get your strength back."

She snickered against him and kissed his neck.

"Wanna go swimming again?" he suggested.

"In a few minutes; right now this is perfect." The breeze was light enough that they stayed comfortably warm in the little cocoon they'd made for themselves, and the few clouds in the sky had moved away entirely, providing them with more sun.

To top it all off they were together, and in the vague recesses of his mind Tony wondered if she knew exactly how right she was.

It was a few minutes before something caught the corner of Tony's eye.

"Hold still a sec…" he told Michelle, reaching a hand into her hair lazily.

"What's wrong?" she frowned and shifted a little.

"Nothing, just don't move…" he readjusted the position of his hand. "There's a spider in your hair, hang on…"

Michelle's eyes went wide and she cringed and tensed in his arms.

"Is it out yet?" she asked desperately, a tinge a panic in her voice.

A second later Tony responded.

"Yeah, got it." he held up his hand for inspection. "See…it's just a little one…"

She instantly shoved his hand back.

"Okay…just…put it somewhere else." She told him in the same voice.

Tony studied her, clearly amused.

"I have a spider-thing, alright? Get it out of here…"

She watched as he set the spider a few feet away in the sand and it scurried into the distance, he was still laughing.

"Since when are you afraid of bugs?"

"I'm not!" she defended. "I just don't like spiders. Lots of people don't like spiders."

He snickered softly and pulled her back against him.

"They're tiny, Michelle."

"They're creepy. I don't like them…I've never liked them."

Tony probably should've let up, but he was having too much fun teasing her.

"You killed that one in the bathroom before…"

"Yeah, well, I don't mind _killing_ them if it'll keep them from crawling into the bed at night…" she shuddered instinctively as she imagined it, and Tony let out one final chuckle before kissing the top of her head and resting against the hammock once more.

"What's your 'thing'?" she asked.

Tony stated confidently. "I don't have one."

"Why do you always have to be so -?"

He gently placed a hand over her mouth to silence her.

"Don't talk now." He chided; leaning back in the hammock and rocking some more.

* * *

Dinner was peaceful. In some ways they were reminded of their first date; one where they had been so excited at the prospect of an evening out together they hadn't really registered how tired they were or how long the work days had been. That night, and this night now, were just about them; about simply enjoying each other's company.

The difference was on their first date they had been nervous; wary of gestures or glances that might linger a little too long and make the other person uncomfortable, or of lull's in the conversation that might've suggested they'd broached too sensitive of a topic or that the date just wasn't going all that well. This was just comfortable and familiar, and it made it all that much better.

"What's wrong?" Tony interrupted a moment of silence when he noticed Michelle looking slightly perplexed starring out into the water.

She smiled and snapped herself out of her daydream.

"Nothing." She assured him.

Tony raised an eyebrow and began slowly drawing circles on the back of her hand.

"Michelle…" he pressed; his voice suggesting that it was quite obvious she was thinking about something and shouldn't waste energy trying to conceal it from him.

"I just can't remember if I forwarded everything on the new security program for City Hall to Gael-"

"You really need to loosen up honey."

Her eyes narrowed indignantly.

"I'm loose…"

Tony laughed and grabbed her hand.

"Let's get out of here…"

* * *

They were the first ones in the pool the next morning.

"Don't even think about it, Almeida." Michelle warned him when she noticed the glint in his eye as he watched her saunter over to the water's edge.

He grinned and said nothing; choosing instead to move closer towards her.

"I'm taking you with me if you try anything…" She threatened a second time when she noticed he was almost close enough to grab her.

Apparently Tony didn't think very highly of her threats because a second later he'd lifted her from the pavement and made to toss her in the pool. Michelle, not planning on going down without a fight, retained her grip on him and he followed her into the water.

She shrieked at the sudden coldness and sputtered and coughed when that got her a mouthful of water.

Tony tried not to laugh as he wrapped an arm around her and drew her to the side.

"That's a good look for you…" he teased, pushing the hair out of her face.

Her mouth opened as though she was about to argue, but she ended up laughing instead.

"I guess we know who the better swimmer is now." He continued.

She raised an eyebrow and pulled away from him.

"Yeah…right…you threw me in the pool, that doesn't count."

His eyes widened.

"Prove it then…race me…"

"No…"

"Michelle…"

"No…"

"C'mon Michelle…you know you want to beat me…"

"I'm not-"

"There's no one even around…"

She chanced a quick glance around the perimeter. He was right, there was no one. She sighed.

"Alright."

"There and back twice." She agreed when they took their positions at one end.

"What do I get when I win?"

"A pat on the back." She told him sarcastically. "But you won't win…"

He laughed.

She muttered a complaint about his cockiness under her breath that he didn't quite catch.

"What was that?" he questioned innocently.

She scowled.

Michelle did lose, though not by as much as she'd anticipated. It could have partially been due to the fact that she'd been given something of a head start because Tony was just that nice of a guy.

When she finally did touch the edge he watched smugly as she gasped for breath.

"I killed ya…" he joked.

"Yeah right…"

* * *

She felt the sudden shift in weight from the bed and noticed despite the thick curtains that it was already morning.

"Tony…" she groaned tiredly, her voice croaky from sleep. When there was no answer she forced herself out from under the covers and towards the bathroom. Tony's muffled voice could be heard coming from the other side of the door.

"What's going on?"

A guilty Tony covered the mouth piece of his cell phone quickly and froze like a deer caught in the headlights when his eyes met Michelle's.

"I uh…"

She was willing to bet a year's salary the person on the other end of the line was Jack.

With an exasperated sigh she shook her head slowly and exited the bathroom, closing the door behind her.

Tony pulled back the covers, noticing Michelle's back was still turned to him. He slid back into bed and pressed his face in the crook of her neck, biting back a chuckle when she shuddered against him.

"I was just checking in…"

"Uh huh…" she whispered drowsily.

"Like Ryan told me to do…"

"And since when do _you_ do what Ryan tells you to do?"

"Since he gave us a week off and made it possible for us to do this all day…" he countered, biting gently into her neck. "But I'm not sure he realized that at the time…"

She turned over, unable to prevent herself from laughing and shaking her head.

He pulled her in a little more closely and kissed her firmly; his thumb gently running across her cheek.

She shifted slightly under his gaze after a few minutes and said something about getting out of bed when he pulled her back against him and his face turned from joking to serious again. It still made her feel slightly uneasy when he looked at her like that; as though with a single look he could tell everything that was running through her head whether she admitted it or not. It was scary and incredibly comforting at the same time; unnerving as well as calming.

"Hey…" he grabbed her attention and wrapped both arms around her again so she couldn't slip away. "Stay here for a bit, alright?"

Her expression softened and she half-smiled.

"'Kay…"

* * *

The rest of the vacation passed in much of the same fashion; staying in bed until noon, afternoons by the water, dinner plans made spontaneously at the last minute…The last night was sad as much as it was sweet and romantic. Deciding they'd rather spend it together in private, they ate quickly in a quiet restaurant and headed back to their hotel room to change clothes and grab a blanket.

The beach was particularly breezy and Michelle's hair kept getting blown around to the point where she more or less gave up on trying to tame it. The waves crashed furiously against the shore and calm water far out in the distance reflected the light of the moon and stars, giving the whole scene and somewhat ethereal glow.

They remained sitting in the sand for a long time; not really concerned with anything but making the night last as long as possible. Whenever Michelle's thoughts would wander to the prospect of work the following afternoon she would snap her eyes shut and push them from her mind. Work wasn't about to ruin the night; she could think about it later.

There wasn't much conversation between them. Occasionally he asked her if she was still warm enough, and once in a while she would make sure he didn't want to go inside yet. Eventually, Michelle's head came to rest lightly against Tony's shoulder.

"We'll do this again sometime…" he said quietly with his mouth nestled in her hair.

She eyed him uncertainly.

"We'll _find_ a way…" he promised emphatically, reading the look immediately. "No matter what happens…"

"I know…" she smiled and pressed her lips against his cheek as he pulled the blanket further around her shoulders.

When they finally did head back to the hotel room Michelle was pulling off her sweater before the door had even shut behind them. They tugged recklessly at each other's close, not able to move fast enough all of a sudden; needing to make the most of these last few hours of freedom.

The clothes landed haphazardly around the room and when it came time to clean up the next morning Michelle laughed aloud at how they'd managed to cover so much ground in such a small span of time before tumbling onto the bed.

There was something different about that night; something that reminded them both that when it was over everything, these feelings of contentedness and genuine happiness, wouldn't be coming to an end. It felt…permanent. They weren't balancing on the edge of a knife in an attempt to preserve what they had; it was meant to last and regardless what would happen in the future, knowing that was good enough for them.

* * *

"Michelle! Good! You're back…" Chloe hurried up to them the second they entered the CTU bullpen.

"I finished that workup I was doing for Field Ops on Woodward case and something came up that cross referenced with what you put Adam on for the week. I tried to talk to him about it but he didn't seem to think it was a top priority…" she rolled her eyes.

"So could you just let him know that I'm allowed to access the files for the report because it's _obvious_ he won't listen to me…You'd think I'd have gained a little respect by now but according to Adam only his way is the right way…"

Michelle glanced at a smirking Tony who had just walked past her and sighed slightly before giving her full attention to Chloe.

_Back to the grind…_


	2. Back to Reality

**A/N: **_Back…finally! I was working during the summer and by the time I would get home I just didn't have the energy to write! So sorry for the long wait! I promise the next chapter will be better than this one. My lack of time and inspiration didn't leave me much to work with and well…you'll see how that turned out. _

_Thanks to everyone who reviewed chapter one. It's always a nice treat. Oh…and in answer to one reviewer's question, the story is rated T for some of the content in the up and coming chapters. _

_Enjoy! _

Chapter Two – Back to Reality

Sometimes she wanted to pinch herself…just to be sure.

The honeymoon had been one thing; they'd been in their own little world with no CTU and no active protocols and no stumbling into bed after the sun had risen. Being away from all of that right after the wedding made everything seem surreal, but now things were back to the way they'd always been and they were both starting to realize that this was their life now.

Work, in a similar respect, seemed to have hit a stagnant period. When she first started at CTU Michelle had found the slow days long and incredibly boring; now, on the other hand, she appreciated them. It meant she could afford herself the luxury of taking a few minutes of personal time and either paying a visit to Tony's office to see how his day was going or simply just letting her mind wander in soothing silence. Being constantly surrounded by action taught her to block out noise relatively easily; she had to if she ever wanted a moment to breathe during the day.

"Dessler." She snatched up her ringing phone.

"Hey, what's up?"

Her eyes flickered upwards and she grinned surreptitiously.

"Nothing really, I'm just going over the matrix Adam sent me."

"Alright um…Chappelle just called, he's gonna be stopping by to go over a few things…"

"I'll let everyone know."

"Thanks."

He said nothing for a few seconds.

"Was there something else?"

He tipped the phone slightly downward and glanced towards her desk.

"Yeah, what do you feel like for dinner tonight?"

She smiled.

"Whatever you want, honey," she stated unequivocally; realizing in that moment how much more enjoyable work had become in the past year. The desire for the day to move quickly was not the same as it had been. Now, the thing she wanted to go home to was with her through every ungodly hour.

-------------------

"Alright everyone," Ryan came into the conference room, obviously anxious to spend as little of his valuable time with CTU as possible. "Let's make this quick, I don't have all day."

Tony shot Michelle a look that said _well then why the hell did you request the meeting_ and she quickly focused her attention on the latest situation reports to avoid laughing.

"First of all, Homeland Security is concerned with…"

As if on cue, Adam rushed into the conference room.

"Tony we just received Intel from Langley." He spat out breathlessly. "There's a high probability attack planned for the West Coast sometime this afternoon. Chatter on all the networks increased substantially in the past two hours."

"What's the target?" Michelle interjected quickly as Tony rose to his feet.

Tony had a feeling he knew the answer before Adam even said it and his stomach tightened.

"We don't know."

He turned to Michelle who already had the phone in her hand.

"Call Jack."

She nodded and began dialing.

----------------------------------

A school.

That had to be it.

They were targeting a school.

Tony felt himself becoming infuriated at the very notion of it. A school. With kids. Little kids who had no idea what was about to happen or why it was about to happen. Jack was out following up on a lead at that very moment; they had to find these guys in time….they just had to.

"They're American." Michelle had informed him when she made her way into his office a few minutes earlier. He heard the bitterness in her voice when she said it. "But we still have no idea why they're doing it."

"To make a point." He spat harshly. "As usual…"

She sighed weakly and he continued.

"Listen um…Jack's gonna be heading over to the location the group was last seen at. The coordinates are on your system; make sure Chloe repositions the satellite in time."

"We'll need approval from Division…"

"I know..." he looked more than a little irritated at the prospect. "Tell you what…have her start on it while you try and get a hold of Ryan."

She gave a slight nod of her head.

"No problem."

"Thanks."

------------------------------------

"Michelle, I need you on the floor." Tony ran into the Conference Room where she was going over the audio files Chloe had decrypted.

"Jack and the field unit are preparing to make the final takedown."

The headache she'd been nursing all afternoon suddenly gone, Michelle sprang to her feet and was at Tony's side a second later reviewing tactical feeds of the area.

"They'll have to move fast if they want to avoid detection." She explained over the computer screen.

"It won't take them long to realize CTU's arrived."

Tony nodded and scratched his forehead pensively. They were running low on time as it was. The predicted deadline for the attack was fast approaching and this was their last play.

"Team A moves on my signal." Jack's voice echoed. "Tony, we are a go…"

"We've got a runner!" All of CTU heard a minute later. "All units converge now!"

After a long, drawn out pause Jack finally came over the intercom again.

"Tony we lost him."

Tony scowled and took Jack off speaker.

"What happened?"

"He had a car waiting for him just outside our perimeter and by the time we secured the building he was long gone….Damnit!"

"Alright, bring everyone else back to CTU and we'll see what we can get out of them."

Jack sounded dejected when he finally replied.

"Copy that. We'll see you in a few minutes."

---------------------------------------------------

"Did you get anything?" Michelle picked up her pace to catch up with Tony on his way back from the Holding room.

He shook his head, averting her eyes.

"We're gonna send them to Division for further interrogation."

At this she stopped walking abruptly.

"What does Division expect to get out of them that we couldn't?" she asked incredulously.

"Nothing." He finally looked at her. "That's the problem. No one seems to know anything…"

"So we're just gonna let him go?"

Tony sighed heavily. "Those were the orders."

He stopped her before she could argue some more.

"Look, I don't like it any better than you do…But chances are if Jack and Darren can't get anything out of these guys after being locked in a room with each of them for hours they can't know much…"

She still looked uncertain.

"We'll find this guy before he tries anything else." He assured her simply. "Trust me…I wouldn't have given up so easily if I thought there was a point…"

Michelle nodded; knowing he was right, and followed him into the Conference Room.

As Ryan droned on and on about how pleased he was with the results produced by the office Michelle noticed the time on her watch. 1:14am.Where in the world had the night gone?

She was thinking grudgingly about the amount of paperwork she still had to complete before they could even think about heading home. Tony announced that the next shift would be arriving so that they could have the rest of the day off.

It was then that she noticed a small, folded up piece of paper being slipped in front of her.

Tony inclined his head towards the paper and watched from his peripheral as she opened it.

_Breakfast and a movie? _

She bit her lip to keep from smiling and nodded subtly. His knee bumped hers under the table in acknowledgement and she pressed her lips together firmly before turning back to the video monitor.

---------------------------------------------

"Hey," Tony entered the break room just as Michelle was pouring herself a cup of coffee. The sun was just about to start rising and she was dying for their day to go to bed.

She turned around and smiled, pulling down his mug from the shelf and filling it in turn.

"Hey," she handed him the coffee. "Tired?"

Tony nodded and hung his head while Michelle added milk and sugar to her own mug. He leaned back against the counter before taking a long, drawn out sip, willing the warmth of the liquid to help him relax. Michelle took up her own position, sideways against the counter, before reaching out a hand and rubbing the back of his neck. His eyes opened slowly, red and blotchy from sheer exhaustion.

"What do you have left?" Michelle asked, smirking as Tony's eyes rolled back in his head while she kneaded her knuckles a little more firmly into the nape of his neck

"Status report..." he yawned. "You sure you don't wanna head home? I'm gonna be another hour here...maybe two."

Michelle grinned and leaned her own exceptionally tired head to one side.

"Go home to our big, lonely house by myself? Not a chance..."

As her hand moved from his neck to his hair Tony's eyes closed again, showing Michelle exactly how close he was to nodding off at that very moment.

"Honey, I can finish the report..." she told him quietly as she took a step closer. "Go home, get some sleep..."

"Nah..." he put down his drink and pulled her into a hug, resting his head in the crook of her neck and breathing deeply. "This is the only way to sleep..."

Michelle sighed as a momentary lapse of judgment overtook her and she sunk into the sensation of hot breaths warming her to the very core.

"We should do this more often..." Tony mumbled into her shoulder. "It works better than coffee..."

She laughed and fell further into the embrace; wondering how they'd ever managed to last so long without seeking each other out at work in this way again.

Tony lifted out of the hug long enough to tilt Michelle's mouth towards his, before pressing his own against it gently.

"Ahem!" came a cough from the doorway. Michelle blushed furiously and pulled away, embarrassed at having been so irresponsible. Tony looked more irritated than anything else, especially when he saw who it was that had interrupted them.

"What do you want, Chloe?"

Chloe stomped across the floor. "Nothing, I wanted coffee. The whole office shares this break room, remember?" She rolled her eyes.

Michelle shot a glance at Tony before bringing her mug to her lips to hide her grin.

"Let me know if you want some help with the report..." she reminded him before flouncing out the door.

"I could report you for that..." Chloe informed him.

"Report me for what?" he asked, disinterested.

Chloe stared at him, obviously exasperated. "For what you and Michelle were just doing… Behavior like that really is inappropr-"

"Go home Chloe. Your shift is over, there are no active protocols, and I really don't know why you're still here..."

"I was just trying to - "

"Go home." Tony finished before grabbing his mug and following Michelle out of the room.

--------------------------------------------------

It was a beautiful, sunny morning with a light breeze and very little humidity. When they finally stepped outside through the doors of CTU Michelle inhaled deeply, glad for a little fresh air after being cooped up inside for almost twenty-four hours. Her eyes were tired from staring at computer screens and fine print and her skin felt dry and cracked from the air conditioning.

"Alright Almeida, I can live with that one." Michelle conceded when Tony approached her later on in the video store with yet another choice. He wrapped his arms around her tightly from behind and his breath intentionally tickled her neck.

"Good." He pressed a quick kiss against her shoulder and made his way up to the counter.

A few packets of jam and cream cheese later they squished onto the couch munching their breakfasts contently and taking the occasional sip of water in between. Tony knew that within a few minutes of finishing her meal Michelle would be out like a light and he would be using his last bit of energy to drag her into bed.

Michelle had barely swallowed the last bite of her bagel when she tugged a blanket over her shoulders, entangled her legs with Tony's, and passed out on his shoulder. Soon afterwards Tony followed, stopping the movie less than halfway into it. Michelle barely woke up long enough to be half-led, half-carried to bed and resumed her original position as soon as they flopped against the mattress together.

----------------------------------------------------

She rolled over groggily hours later to Tony's lips against her cheek, and then her neck, and then her own lips. She sighed and brushed him away.

"Morning."

He chuckled softly.

"It's three in the afternoon, Michelle."

"Shut up." She pushed him away half-heartedly and felt another kiss on her lips; this one a little more passionate.

Her eyes remained closed as she burrowed into his chest and pulled the blankets back over them.

"Definitely not time to get up yet…" she decided with a yawn.

He settled back against the pillows as she came to rest entirely on top of him. His palms began slowly circling her back before coming to rest around her body.

"What are you gonna do today?" he asked when he was certain she hadn't dozed off again.

"Cleaning." She told him definitely. "This place has needed cleaning since we got back and you seem to get in my way every night."

He snickered as she asked:

"What are you gonna do today?"

"Get in your way."

She raised her eyebrows.

"Ah…but I'm used to you by now, Almeida. You can't distract me as easily as you used to…"

"Liar." he muttered and she laughed as his hands slid up the back of her shirt.

Headphones firmly in place, Michelle slopped the mop into a bucket of soapy water and sloshed it fluidly all over the kitchen tiles. Tony had declared he was going to work out, (which had made her laugh and ask him when the last time he could remember doing that was), and she was all by her lonesome quite enjoying the fact that she had a little peace and quiet to get some work done.

_"Y'know, it's supposed to be fifty-fifty…" _he'd reminded her as she filled the bucket in the sink.

_"What is?" _

_"All this cooking…cleaning…housework stuff…" _

_"It is honey; you cook and I clean." _

_------------------------------------------------------_

Later that night Tony was sitting at the computer and Michelle was getting restless and ready to be distracted again.

"Whatcha doin'?" she leaned over the bag of his chair slung her arm across the front of her chest.

She lowered her lips to his neck and let her fingers slip below his collar without waiting for a response.

"E-mail." He stated, without looking away from the screen.

Her hands undid the first few buttons of his shirt and she moved her lips a little further down to his chest.

"Tony…" she urged and went to work on his belt.

He was still ignoring her and she was getting a little frustrated. She turned the chair away from the computer and kissed him firmly, slipping her tongue in between his lips as her hands worked their way down his boxers.

"Did you need something?" he joked slyly, grabbing her wrists and pulling them to the side.

She kissed him again and her squirmed out of his grasp. Her thumb gently stroked the little patch of hair below his belly button.

He pulled her hands away again and cocked his head to one side.

"Can I help you with something?"

She grinned mischievously, moved his fingers to her lips and slid one into her mouth; sucking gently.

"Michelle…" he warned through gritted teeth.

"I thought you were cleaning…"

She giggled and finally managed to drag him onto his feet and maneuver them into the hallway. She wasn't sure how they ended up on the living room couch instead of on the bed, (possibly she had taken a wrong turn somewhere in the heat of the moment), but the last coherent words she remembered uttering before giving up entirely was something about making sure the blinds were closed.

Once they were both spent Tony's forehead came to rest against her shoulder and he fought to regain his breath.

She ran her fingers gently through his hair and kissed the side of his face lightly.

"Bed…" she motioned towards the doorway and pulled him towards the off the couch.

Michelle was convinced Tony had fallen asleep by the time his head hit the pillow, but continued to stroke his hair while propped up on one elbow for a few seconds, a wry smile forming on her lips. When she pulled away he stirred.

"Don't stop…" he murmured drowsily.

She snickered.

"I thought you were sleeping…"

His hand slid behind her head and pulled her in for a barely-there kiss.

"So that was a productive day off..."

He grunted his agreement; clearly not in the mood for conversation.

"Kitchen's clean, bathrooms are clean…You did your workout-thing for the first time in about six months…Living room's probably a mess now, but I guess it was worth-"

A throw pillow came flying in her direction.

"Go to sleep..."


	3. Vexed

**A/N: **_Okay so…I took forever again, sorry :S. Between school and life and boys I didn't find much time to write…lol. Anyway, here it is. I'm aiming to get the next chapter up relatively soon, (by comparison at least), but no promises as I'm in midterms right now and they…kinda suck…:P. You all know by now how much I love the reviews you leave me; they're why I'm still doing this :). _

_So without further ado…_

Chapter Three – Vexed

A little into their third month of marriage there was a conference at District that required both Tony and Michelle's presence. They'd never, for one reason or another, been sent to one of these things together and he was definitely happy about the change this time around. In most cases no one seemed to hold his attention for very long and it was more than obvious the majority of the big mouths there were all talk and no action. So at least, this way, he'd have Michelle with him to keep him grounded, instead of everyone who somehow knew his name lingering beside him or Jack as they tried to impress the head honchos.

He was to go first thing on Monday morning and Michelle and Jack the following day. Ryan seemed to think it was important they all at least make an appearance or, in Michelle's case, make some connections. Their office _was_ a pretty integral part of everything going on in LA, (and the country for that matter) and on that note, their respective presences were required. Or so they were told.

"Thank god you're coming on Tuesday." He said while they watched TV the evening before.

She laughed. "They can't be that bad…"

"You try making conversation with people who'd spend the whole day kissing Hammond's ass if they could."

She shook her head and looked away.

"I'm not exaggerating, Michelle." He told her seriously.

"Of course not…" she brushed him off.

Tony rolled his eyes. "Just you wait…"

"What time are you leaving anyway?" she called from the bathroom over the running water as she washed her face.

"Early. I'm gonna go to CTU for a few hours first…"

"How early?" she turned off the water and leaned her head against the doorway.

He tossed his shirt into the laundry basket.

"Five-ish…"

She flicked off the light and patted her cheeks and forehead with a towel as she emerged into the bedroom.

"Why do you have to go to CTU, anyway?"

He shot her an irritated look. "Why else? Bureaucracy, paperwork; all the perks that come with running the damn place..."

She smiled knowingly as she tossed the decorative pillows to corner of the room. "I don't envy you…"

He nodded and scratched the side of his face. "Yeah…I wouldn't either…"

"I'll be late getting back too." He reminded her as they pulled back their respective sides of the comforters.

She frowned; a slight sense of déjà vu overcoming her. "How late?"

"Ten…eleven…whenever they get sick of hearing themselves talk…who knows if I'll even make it home at all…"

This made her giggle as she slid between the sheets.

"Alright." She yawned and fell onto her pillow, eyes already half closed. She mumbled a dreary 'night' as he brushed his lips against her temple and slid his arm around her waist.

He sighed, eager to enjoy a few hours of peaceful sleep before all hell broke loose.

"Night, honey."

* * *

When Michelle awoke Tony was puttering around the bedroom, grabbing last minute things. She was debating letting him know she was up or simply lying with her eyes closed in hopes of falling back asleep when he moved to her side of the bed and kissed her softly on the lips.

"Go back to sleep…I'll see you tonight."

She nodded and rolled over.

"Have fun."

He chuckled. "I'll try."

It felt weird to be getting dressed for work without him there, she noted as she came out of the shower and began applying her makeup. Normally, even if he had the day off, he was…there. Tossing slightly and making some noise with the comforter or snoring quietly or, more likely than not, lying wide-awake watching her dress and slipping a few sarcastic comments in now and then and reminding her that he probably wouldn't do much of anything all day. Being all alone made her feel exhausted. There was nothing to perk her up, keep her entertained, or allow her to forget about the fact that it was way too early and they had, as usual, gone to bed way too late.

It wasn't until she pulled open the fridge for milk that she noticed a post-it note resting on top of saran wrap covered plate. She smirked to herself and pulled out the entire thing.

_Just in case you don't feel like pizza…_

_Preheat oven (that's that thing underneath the microwave with the knobs on it) to 350C (Celsius, not Fahrenheit, Kelvin…Celsius), bake for 5, flip, bake for another 5, (that's minutes, not hours…). _

_Try not to burn down the kitchen before I get home. _

_Love you, _

_Tony _

She smiled at the prepared chicken and read the note again before placing everything back in the fridge; all the while assuring herself there had to be something he too was completely hopeless at, and swearing to herself she _would_ figure it out one day.

* * *

"Almeida." He snatched his phone open without looking at the caller ID.

"You know most people leave their wives love notes…not insults." She teased gently and heard him laugh on the other end.

"I'll never do it again..."

"I wasn't complaining…"

She twirled her hair lazily between her fingers, trying not to focus on how lonely she would be that night with nothing but work to keep her company. If only she could remember how she'd managed before…

"How's it going over there?"

He grunted softly. "Could be worse…"

"That's good…"

"It'll be better when you're here."

She smiled and sunk back in her chair, glancing at Jack as he crossed the bullpen leisurely. The day was busy, but lacking the sense of urgency that was all too common. Everyone had a lot to do but it was mundane and monotonous and no one was really into it.

"Ugh…" Tony snapped her back to reality. "Honey, Ryan's here I gotta go. I'll see you tonight, okay?"

"Bye."

* * *

Incidentally she never did burn down the kitchen. In fact, she'd already fallen into bed with every intention of remaining awake by leafing through a magazine until he returned home. She was already asleep when Tony walked in the door at 11:18 that evening.

"Michelle…" he called as he pushed inside. She sat up abruptly, the open magazine sliding off her chest, and immediately felt guilty for having dosed. She was wiping what could only be described as an unattractive puddle of drool from the side of her mouth when he walked into the bedroom.

"Hi." She tried to force the sleepiness from her voice and he eyed her suspiciously.

"Did I wake you?"

"No." she lied badly and scooped the magazine up off the floor. "I was reading."

He reached over and kissed her cheek. "Sorry."

"I don't know why I'm so tired." She yawned apologetically.

Tony grinned at her through the mirror as he unbuttoned his shirt.

"We haven't exactly been getting much sleep these last couple of nights." He reminded her mischievously. "Well…months really…"

She blushed, knowing it was silly to do so, but unable to help it. Anytime he gave her with that knowing look she blushed.

"Yeah well…I'm not a machine." She yawned a second time and flopped back against the pillow.

"You sure had me fooled."

Michelle groaned in exasperation.

"Hurry up and change so we can go to sleep…"

He tugged his pants off in one swift move.

"If you insist."

She groaned even louder and he chuckled as he slid in beside her and nipped gently at her earlobe.

"You asked for it"

She nodded, defeated, before twisting around in his arms.

"I _am_ going to sleep right now, Almeida." She declared firmly before settling her weight against his chest and nuzzling her face into the crook of his neck. His arm came to sit loosely around her shoulders and she sighed against his skin, warming him from the inside out.

"You owe me tomorrow…" he reminded her as his fingers nestled into her hair that hung loosely over her shoulders.

"Mhm…"

* * *

As they stepped into the elevator at District the following morning Michelle glanced around casually at the various individuals; searching for a familiar face. Everyone seemed to know everyone else…except her, and at least three-quarters of the people had waved greetings to Tony as they walked down the hallway.

She found herself biting her lip in amusement when Tony would lean over and make a remark or two about the people she'd been studying.

"That guy…" he indicated to someone laughing loudly at something Brad Hammond had just said on his way to one of the conference rooms.

"Won't have a job pretty soon…there was a systems failure at Division headquarters in San Francisco and he didn't back up his work. All the info they had on militia groups in Eastern Europe got lost. That's why he's being so nice to Hammond."

Michelle's mouth opened slightly in awe and Tony smirked at her.

"And Tom Patterson…" he inclined his head towards a tall, somewhat lanky, but good looking guy in the far corner talking to with a plain brunette woman. "Is sleeping with his subordinate…"

"So are you…" she reminded him slyly.

"Yeah but I'm not doing it with every woman in the office…" she grinned and he leaned in a little closer. "Only the pretty ones."

Her lips curved into a small smile and his hand grazed hers softly and unnoticeably.

"Just relax…" he told her soothingly.

"I am relaxed." She brushed him off.

"Michelle…" he raised an eyebrow and she pursed her lips together.

"I _am_." She insisted indignantly.

Michelle was a little surprised at how relieved she felt when she saw Jack approach them from across the room. At least he was one person she knew.

"Ryan wants us all in Conference Room B in five minutes."

They both nodded.

"And I called CTU; Gael says everything's under control but if anything changes he'll let us know."

They all made their way into the Conference room and slipped into seats near the back. Michelle picked a pen up off the table and began fishing through her bag for the briefing package they'd been sent the previous week with a series of statistics and more or less the game plan for the next two days.

She glanced up in time to see two women; both impeccably dressed and well groomed enter the room. One, the more petite of the two, had her bright red hair resting in delicate waves over her shoulders and a light, flawless tan that only seemed to emphasize how perfectly white and straight her teeth were.

She beamed widely in Michelle's direction, or so Michelle had thought, until she realized it certainly wasn't her that the megawatt smile was being flashed at.

"Tony!" the woman grinned happily.

Michelle felt her eyes widened and shot a confused glance in Tony's direction. He apparently missed it, because he smiled politely back at the redhead.

"Hey Hannah."

She glided gracefully to his side. "I thought I might see you here."

His brow creased and he twisted uncomfortably in his seat.

"I can't exactly say the same thing." He bit his lip. "When did you start working for-?"

At that moment Ryan Chappelle took his place at the front of the room the incessant chatter stopped. Hannah reached over and squeezed Tony's forearm that was resting against the table.

"We'll talk later." She whispered sweetly and flashed one final smile before taking her seat a few places down from him.

Michelle eyed him uncertainly as he watched Hannah slide into her chair, cross her legs, and turn to the front of the room. Before Michelle had time to ask Tony what that had been about Ryan began talking. Pushing the thought out of her mind, Michelle began leafing through the briefing package again.

She could ask him about it later.

"So stranger…" Michelle spun around just in time to see Hannah nudge Tony affectionately on her way out of the room.

"Hey…" he smiled and stopped in his tracks. "Are you gonna tell me what the hell you're doing working for DOD now?"

Hannah shrugged offhandedly.

"I just…decided it was time for a change…" she glanced upwards at him and for the first time looked serious. Michelle felt awkward lingering beside them, obviously unnoticed, until Tony finally realized she was standing there.

"Oh uh…Hannah this is Michelle Dessler…" he took a step back so they were facing each other. "CTU's IPM."

Hannah smiled politely and extended a hand.

"Nice to meet you, Michelle."

Michelle forced her own polite smile and tried determinedly not to wonder why "my wife" never made its way into the introduction. After all, they never referred to each other in that context at work. Why should now be any different? It did bother her that for some reason this woman, whose relationship with Tony she still wasn't entirely certain of, had never been mentioned before.

_Maybe they were just friends._ She rationalized calmly.

_Yeah_…her conscience nagged. _Because that's how you look at your former friends_…

"I mean after we…y'know…" Hannah's voice echoed in Michelle's ear. "I just knew I had to do something drastic…"

Tony sighed and raised his eyes to meet hers.

"And I can't pretend I didn't hope I might run into you one day." She laughed half-heartedly.

_Maybe it was just a fling…_Michelle's brain tried again; not sure if that would make the whole thing better or worse.

_Right…because he's the type to have a fling with someone like that…_

As she mentally listed Hannah's good points Michelle felt her breakfast inadvertently creeping back up her throat.

Hannah's voice dropped a few decibels. "Getting over you definitely wasn't easy…"

_Oh god…_she swallowed hard. Michelle's head was spinning now. Who was she? Why had she never heard of Hannah before? Surely it would've come up by n –

"Are you feeling okay, Michelle?" the sound of her incessant chatter had stopped and Michelle turned to see a very concerned looking Hannah and a very guilty looking Tony staring at her.

"Yeah…" she gasped. "Fine. I think I just need a pick-me-up. I'm gonna go grab some coffee." She spun on her heel and started to move away.

"Michelle…" Tony called but she ignored him and continued to walk away.

Hannah turned to Tony again and raised an eyebrow.

"Is she okay?"

He bit his lip. "Yeah."

She nodded and immediately pushed Michelle from her mind.

"So how about you?" she tilted her head to the side. "How have you been Mr. Director of CTU?"

He shrugged innocuously, but his eyes moved towards Michelle who was standing with a Styrofoam cup trying to nonchalantly glance in their direction as she spoke to Jack about something. He smiled subtly to himself.

"I've been great."

"You look good."

"Thanks uh…so do you."

Hannah laughed. "Probably a lot better than the last time you saw me."

Tony grinned sympathetically. "It wasn't that bad."

"I was a wreck." She admitted, smirking slightly. "I guess that's just the affect you have on people."

He raised both eyebrows sardonically. "Yeah…sure…"

"How long have you been married anyway?"

Tony brought his left hand to his brow, biting his lip slightly.

"It's kind of hard not to notice these things." She smiled and he did too.

"About three months…" _Three months…two days…twenty-one hours…eighteen minutes…and loving every second of it. _

"Congratulations." Hannah squeezed his arm congenially.

"Thanks."

"Anyway listen, I should try and mingle a bit…Will you be here tomorrow?"

He nodded.

"Alright, I'll see you then."

And with that Hannah was gone.

When he looked back towards Michelle she was by herself again, still flipping through the file she'd been carrying.

"Hey," he stood beside her and she jumped.

"Hey," she glanced up briefly and then shifted back to her papers.

"Have you memorized that thing yet?" he joked lightly.

She didn't seem to appreciate it very much.

"Where's Hannah?"

He looked at her carefully for a few seconds, noting how she was trying to avoid his gaze and not look too concerned with anything at the same time, before responding.

"She went to talk to some people."

"Oh…" Michelle swallowed hard. "She seemed sweet."

"Michelle…" he reached out to touch her arm and she snapped her head back forcefully.

"What?"

Tony hesitated. "Wanna tell me what that was about back there?"

"I could ask the same thing." She retorted a little testily; regretting it almost immediately.

"Michelle…" his hand locked around her elbow firmly and she opened her mouth as though about to say something, but shut it quickly and conceded when she noticed Hammond was approaching them.

Tony followed her eyes and muttered "damnit" under his breath before releasing her.

"We'll talk later?" he confirmed, his lips a few inches from her ear.

She nodded and he searched her carefully for assurance before stepping out to meet Brad before he could ask them what was going on. That was all they needed now.

The rest of the day passed pleasantly; although it was a little obvious to both of them that they were treading carefully trying to avoid the topic. Both found it particularly difficult when, at the end of the day, Hannah waved a cheery goodnight to Tony just as they were stepping outside and into the parking garage. Michelle attempted pointlessly to read Tony's face and was convinced it had never been as expressionless as it was at that very moment. Instead, she just tried to not look as though she was paying attention, (more in case Hannah was observing her than anything else), and when Tony did nothing but wave politely she gave up, aware she wouldn't have much longer to wait until she got the full details.

* * *

"We dated." Were the first words out of his mouth when the front door to their house swung shut.

Michelle slipped her jacket off her shoulders and moved to the cupboard without really looking at him.

"Yeah. I figured that much out." She stated unequivocally.

Tony sighed and leaned against the wall, arms folded in front of him and his head cocked exasperatedly to one side.

"Do you wanna know what happened?" he asked as she hung up her jacket.

She turned around to face him finally.

"Do you want to tell me?"

He sighed impatiently and met her eyes.

"It ended six months before…" he hesitated, a little unsure as to whether or not adding this to the mix would do more harm than good. "Six months before Nina." He finished quickly

Michelle tensed, but didn't say anything.

"I broke up with her."

"How come?" she pressed, coming across more eager than she'd wanted to.

He shrugged. "It just stopped working. It was fine in the beginning but we were too…different."

Again, Michelle said nothing, but twisted her shoulders away from him when he took a step towards her.

"C'mon Michelle…Don't be like this…"

"I'm not being like anything." She sputtered defensively and began moving towards the kitchen.

"There's nothing to be jealous-"

"I'm not jealous."

"Michelle…" he looked at her skeptically.

"I'm not."

She stopped moving long enough to bring her hand to her forehead.

"I don't know what's wrong with me. I'm sorry." She grimaced apologetically.

"You don't like it when people know about us…" he began slowly.

"Neither do you..."

"Only because I know it bothers _you_."

She winced, knowing immediately that was true and wondering if Tony had the faintest idea why. The thing was, he was the boss; the head of CTU and had been from the moment they started dating. She was the subordinate. She was the one trying to establish herself whether for promotion or simply recognition from her superiors. In this case, however, her husband was her superior, and there was always this inkling in the back of her mind that telling people that might destroy any credibility she'd attained over the last couple of years. Tony was, really, the one who evaluated her performance and not everyone seemed so convinced that their personal and professional lives were nice and separate. The idea that people might think she wasn't as capable, or worse, didn't _need_ to be as capable because she was married to the Director of CTU rubbed her the wrong way.

"Did you _want _me to tell Hannah?" Tony took advantage of the fact that she'd stopped moving and stepped towards her. She shook her head.

"Well then, what do you want me to do?"

"I don't know." She turned red and looked away. "I'm just being stupid. I don't want you to do anything…"

"Well you must want me to do something…"

"No, honestly." She managed a smile. "It's not a big deal."

It had never been more obvious that he didn't believe her, but she carried on as though he did anyway.

"I think I'm gonna take a bath. My head hurts."

He reluctantly backed off; quite aware that whatever had been eating away at her was something she'd much rather be left alone about. She knew that she could tell him absolutely anything if she ever felt like it anyway.

* * *

Michelle tossed the book she'd grabbed on her way out of the bedroom to the side of the tub and folded a pillow for her head as the water level rose. The room filled with a nice, dense, steam and she inhaled deeply as a mixed floral-citrus scent floated into her nostrils. Swiftly, she tossed her robe to one side, slid into the soapy water and closed her eyes.

It was ironic that this time yesterday she'd been waiting impatiently for Tony to arrive home, and now she was glad for the quiet time to herself. She just wanted a few moments not to think; a few moments where all she had to listen to was her own deep breaths inhaling and exhaling in the serenely quiet bathroom and the occasional swish of water as her toes came to rest on the far edge of the tub.

_Breathe in…breathe out…_she sighed.

This was nice.

In the entire time they'd been living in the house she hadn't taken a nice, long bath. The thought had simply never occurred to her, or a shower seemed so much more efficient, or she was just too tired to spend half-an-hour soaking in a tub when she could be asleep in bed, or resting on the couch, or with Tony…

But now, this was nice.

It was her time. Time to allow herself to be completely irrational and overly sensitive and emotional; time to luxuriate is the smell of fancy bubbles and hog the bathroom, and even swoon hopelessly over one of those sappy romance novels she kept stashed in the back of her half of the closet for when she was just in a "mood".

Forty-five minutes later Michelle emerged from the bedroom, dressed in her terrycloth bathrobe, to find Tony sprawled out on the couch flipping channels. He glanced up as she walked past him.

"There's pasta on the stove."

"Thanks."

Tony stopped paying attention to the TV as he listened to Michelle putter around the kitchen. The passive-aggressiveness wasn't really working for him at that moment. He would've much rather she just told him what was wrong and how she wanted him to fix it. He was good at fixing things.

She ate dinner alone in the kitchen; definitely not a good sign… And he wasn't ready to give up getting whatever it was out of her yet…

"Hot enough?" he asked as he made his way to the counter.

She glanced up blankly. "What?"

"Is the food hot enough?"

"Oh…" she turned back to her bowl. "Yeah, it's great."

"I was thinking that maybe we could go out tomorrow night after we're done at District."

"It'll be so late when we get out..."

"Michelle…" he pulled her hand towards him and furrowed his brow in exasperation; his irritation obvious now. "This is stupid. You can't ignore me all night because my ex-girlfriend showed up. If I had done that with Steve…"

"You did."

"Huh?"

"You barely spoke to me for three days."

Tony flinched. Steve, the guy she'd dated in the last few years of college, and the one who had proposed when he got transferred to Florida, had showed up a few months into _their_ engagement asking Michelle out to dinner. It had pretty much driven him insane.

"I'm not mad." She told him a little too harshly; snapping him out of his reverie. "I just would rather not talk about it right now."

"Alright…"

She pulled away from him and wordlessly loaded her dish into the dishwasher.

"I'm gonna head to bed. I'm beat."

"Hey…" he grasped her arm and steered her between his legs as he leaned back against the counter.

"This isn't gonna be like us going to bed angry or anything like that, right?" he tilted her chin upwards for conformation and she smiled a little in amusement.

"No…"

"And if I wake up at three in the morning you'll still be here, right? You're not gonna decide to go for a walk or a run or anything like that?"

She opened her mouth to argue.

"Michelle…" he stated firmly as he cupped a hand over her mouth. "I hate it when you do that."

She sighed and nodded reluctantly.

"Alright." He conceded and released her; his eyes never leaving her until the bedroom door closed.

* * *

"Excuse me, Michelle?"

Michelle looked up to see a smiling Hannah holding out a stack of papers.

"You dropped these."

Michelle accepted them curtly.

"Thanks."

"No problem…" Hannah waited a few seconds before sinking into the chair beside her.

"Listen um…" she glanced around obviously. "You haven't seen Tony today, have you?"

"He's…" Michelle cleared her throat and avoided raising her eyes from the table. "He's in a meeting with Vaughn."

"Oh…" Hannah looked dejected. "Right…"

Just when Michelle thought she'd avoided conversation with the other woman for the duration of the meeting Hannah piped up again.

"Is something bothering you?"

Michelle winced inwardly, noting that subtlety obviously wasn't something the other woman practiced.

"No…" she forced a mildly irritated smile hoping Hannah would get the hint.

"Have you been at CTU long?"

"About three years." Michelle continued to look bored and disinterested and wished that the conversation would just end.

"Wow…that's great. The Director in San Francisco is totally useless. We can't wait to get rid of him. It must be nice working with Tony everyday…"

"Mhm…"

"Like you probably heard yesterday, Tony and I used to date. That's part of the reason I took this job… He would get home after midnight some days and it was just…frustrating…"

"You lived together?" Michelle asked, momentarily forgetting her indifference.

Hannah laughed loudly and said: "God no…" which made Michelle relax a bit more.

"I was working with this security company and after we broke up I just…wanted to understand what this compulsion he had was…you know? I thought maybe if I was involved in it myself I could…" she shrugged.

Michelle smiled for the first time and glanced up at Hannah; realizing what it was that had made them break up. Hannah didn't get it, at all, and years later nothing had changed. It occurred to Michelle in that moment how eerily dissimilar they were and what had been gnawing at her all night finally reached the surface.

He had dated Nina right afterwards. Hannah wasn't right so he moved on to Nina. Michelle knew she wasn't like Hannah; she knew that with one-hundred percent certainty. But did that…she flinched…oh god…

* * *

At the end of the day Michelle caught up with Tony again.

"Hey,"

He eyed her curiously. "Hi. How was it?"

She shrugged. "Not bad. I talked to Hannah."

Tony's eyes widened slightly. "You did…"

"Yeah."

It took her a second to work up the nerve to ask what she was about to ask.

"Am I…am I like Nina?" she lowered her voice to a whisper and leaned in close as she spoke.

Tony stopped dead in his tracks and his eyes widened in bewilderment.

"What the hell kind of a question is that?"

"I mean…" she grimaced. "I mean when you were…with her…is that like I am now? Am I what she would've been if she hadn't…?"

"Where the hell did you get that idea?" he asked incredulously.

"I don't know Tony. I have to be, don't I? At least to some degree…"

He sighed and nudged her towards the car. They'd never really had a full blown, no holds barred discussion on Nina Myers before and he had been keen to avoid that. He was over Nina, he barely even thought about Nina anymore, but it had never really occurred to him that Michelle might want to…compare herself to Nina…Nina wasn't an ex-girlfriend she was a traitor. Or at least, that's how he'd always thought of it.

But the _more_ he thought about it the more it made sense. They were doing the same job. Michelle had the job Nina had had when they were together. It was actually pretty logical that she would compare them, he realized. On a superficial level the similarities were almost undeniable.

"She was a little bit like you." He stated softly, choosing his words carefully. "At work mainly…she was smart… she had to be to be good at her job otherwise she never would've made it where she was." He tilted his head slightly towards Michelle's and smiled a little. "You don't remind me of her though…at all. When Nina was arrested I was angry, mostly because I saw what she did to Jack and Kim; but I never missed her. I never wished she wasn't who she was, I just wished I'd realized it sooner…then maybe a lot of bad things wouldn't have happened to a lot of people…" his feet scuffed the pavement and he thought carefully about what he was trying to say.

His expression softened and he tugged her a little closer to him.

"You're not like her. Nothing I love about you did I see in her…ever. I don't know what I'd do without you. Alright?" he shifted a little uncomfortably but remained determined to see that she got the point. "I don't know how to explain it, Michelle. Just trust me when I tell you that regardless of what Nina did and who she was, good or bad, she's not you."

Michelle pursed her lips together to keep her eyes from tearing and nudged her mouth against his own.

"So we're okay?" he checked after they broke the kiss.

She nodded and he smiled in relief.

"Good." He kissed her hair. "That's two nights you owe me now…"


	4. Cuts Like a Knife

Chapter Four – Cuts like a Knife

"Dessler."

"Hey…listen…Jack's bringing a few of the suspects here. Can you set up a couple of holding rooms for me and get Interrogation One ready?"

Michelle pushed her hair behind her ears and leaned away from her computer. It had been a relatively busy few hours so far. A lead they'd been working up for the better part of the week had finally panned out and a tactical team had apprehended three suspects just moments before.

"Yeah. No problem. I'll forward the search grid I was working on to Gael."

"Thanks and um…once that's done you can run our side, okay?"

Michelle crinkled her brow in surprise without even realizing it.

"You sure?"

"Yeah, I'll hang out on the floor in case something comes up. Just make sure you get the report to me when you're done."

"Thanks."

"Alright…Let me know when you're set up."

* * *

Half an hour later Michelle watched Jack and a few guards escort one of the suspects into Interrogation One.

"Everything ready?" Jack checked with her before entering the room.

Michelle nodded and handed him the person's file. "Richards is on standby in case you need him. Chloe's running Comm."

"Did you raise the thermostat?"

"Yeah, ten degrees"

"Good." Jack nodded curtly, slipped his jacket off his shoulders and handed it to one of the guards with a murmur of thanks.

"Tell Tony I'm getting started."

"No problem."

Jack pushed his sleeves above his elbows and opened the one door while Michelle stepped inside the other.

"How are the readings?" she asked Chloe.

"We're plugged into his vitals. Everything looks good."

She grabbed the phone and dialed Tony's extension.

"Jack's about to start. I'll let you know when we have anything."

She put on the headset and tapped the microphone lightly.

"Whenever you're ready Jack…"

* * *

"Tony?" Adam's voice came over the phone

"Yeah?" Tony lay back against his chair, the day was barely half over and already he was tired.

"Danny Dessler's on the line for the Michelle. He says it's important."

Tony frowned. To his knowledge, Danny hadn't called Michelle at work since the day of the bomb.

"She's running interrogation right now."

"Yeah I tried to tell him that. This is the fourth time he's called." Adam apologized, his voice laced with annoyance. "He just keeps saying it's important."

"Alright…" Tony leaned his forehead in his hands, wondering what was so urgent. "Just patch him through to me."

"Sure." Adam transferred the call. "Go ahead Tony..."

"Danny, Michelle's doing something for me right now…I can have her call you back when she's done."

Danny, Tony noted, sounded incredibly shaky when he finally did speak.

"It can't wait, it's important. I wouldn't have called here if it wasn't."

"I know, but she's in interrogation." Tony lowered his voice. "I can't interrupt right n–"

"Tony, it's our dad."

Tony's stomach dropped.

"What?"

"He had a stroke."

A hand wiped the cold sweat from Tony's forehead.

"Is he okay?"  
"He's uh…" Danny stuttered. "He's stable for now but…"

"Are you in DC?"

Danny nodded to no one's benefit but his own and gave Tony the name of the hospital.

"She'll be there." he stated flatly and slammed the phone down.

A minute later Tony reluctantly picked up the phone again.

"Gael, meet me downstairs in one minute."

"Something wrong?"

"I'll explain when I get there."

* * *

Less than five minutes later the door to the Observation room swung open and Tony stepped inside, followed closely by Gael. Michelle looked up when he entered and frowned.

"What's going on?" she stared between the two looking perplexed, until Gael came to stand beside her chair with an apologetic look on his face. Tony glanced over at Jack, who was now seated across from the prisoner.

"Tony?" she tried again. "What's going on?"

Tony glanced at Gael and nodded wordlessly for him to take a seat. "If Jack takes a break tell him I need to see him right away." He told him firmly before finally looking at Michelle.

Her eyes focused on him expectantly, the confusion evident in her expression, refusing to move until she was given an explanation.

"I need to talk to you." He spoke to her, trying not to think about how much he was going to upset her in a few minutes time. He, of all people, knew how close she was to her dad. Hell, her Christmas present the previous year had been a trip to see him because she missed him so much.

"What's wrong?" her voice interrupted his thoughts.

Tony bit his lip. "I'll explain in a minute...c'mon."

Her stomach clenched as Michelle tried, without success, to read Tony's face. It wasn't a look of annoyance or anger, (she knew that look all too well). Now, his tone was soft and his movements were exceptionally gentle as he escorted her out of the room.

Neither said another word as they moved across the bullpen, and when the door to Tony's office closed he motioned for her to take a seat on the couch. She obliged reluctantly and he leaned backwards against his desk, arms folded across his chest.

"Tony..." she half-begged as he continued to observe her silently while he tried to buy himself some time.

"Danny called." he began slowly. "He said it was important so I talked to him while you were with Jack."

"So..." her voice became uneven, her windpipe swelled and her lungs constricted, so the most she could produce was an airy whisper. She cleared her throat. "So what'd he want?"

Tony's jaw shifted and his eyes grew a little watery as he watched Michelle play with the edge of her skirt and chew on the corner of her mouth.

"I'm a little sketchy on the details still but..." God this really wasn't fair. It wasn't fair that Michelle had to have this happen to her, and he felt equally horrible for having to be the one to tell her.

"Your dad...he had a stroke."

Michelle's eyes prickled and threatened to spill water over her lashes.

"Did um…" her head fell into her hands and she couldn't quite remember what she'd been planning on asking him when Jack rapped lightly on the glass and pushed the door open.

"Tony, Gael said you needed to see me…" his voice dropped slightly when he noticed Michelle and he shot Tony a questioning look as she pulled her head out of her hands.

Tony indicated for Jack to follow him into the hallway and left Michelle sitting in a daze on the couch.

"Michelle's dad had a stroke." Tony stated quietly when they were out of earshot. "He's at a hospital in DC.

Jack glanced at Michelle through the glass; she was sitting erect now.

"If we get anything out of these guys you'll need to be here."

"I know…" Tony sighed. "But I can't just…"

Jack clawed at his brow and glanced at Michelle again, who was now pacing around the office anxiously.

"Did you try Chappelle?"

"He's in a meeting." Tony grimaced. "Look Jack, just bear with me for a little while until Michelle figures out what she wants to do, alright?"

"Will Gael be okay to run interrogation?"

"Yeah, I think so… I'll be back as soon as I can."

"Yeah, okay."

They returned briefly to Tony's office long enough for Jack to ask Michelle if she was okay. She was sitting back on the couch again, cell phone in hand. She snapped it shut.

"I'm fine, thanks Jack."

Tony nodded and Jack backed quietly out of the room, leaving the pair alone again.

"Hey..." Tony inched forward and touched her arm but Michelle pulled away.

"I'm fine Tony." she stated a little more abruptly than she'd intended. "I just need to get my things together. There's a flight in a few hours if I can get to the airport by then…" she glanced at her watch quickly.

"I'll forward all my active protocols to Adam." She sprung up regaining her composure. "Hopefully I can get everything sent to him before Jack's done interrogating-"

"Michelle you don't have to do this..." he grabbed hold of her elbow and pulled her towards him. Her eyes remained fixated on the door until she finally spoke, looking directly at him.

"Yes I do."

He sighed and released her from his grip.

"I'll try Chappelle again..."

"What for?"

He looked surprised. "You're not going by yourself."

"No…" she told him firmly. "No, don't do that. It's better this way anyway."

"You don't want me to come?"

"If Jack and Gael get anything out of these guys you'll need to be here."

"Michelle…"

"It's better this way." She told him firmly, but he remained looking skeptical, even when he finally conceded.

"Okay." He moved to the desk and reached for his wallet and car keys. "Get your stuff. I'll take you to the airport."

She seemed to be considering this as well.

"Michelle…" he stated in a tone that suggested it wasn't up for negotiation. "I'm taking you to the airport."

"Alright." She swallowed hard. "Thanks."

* * *

In less than an hour they were driving down the highway to LAX, a bag of clothes packed for Michelle and reservations made on the next flight to Washington thanks to a few airport officials owing Tony a couple of favors.

Michelle hadn't said or done much of anything since CTU. Tony had kept glancing at her doubtfully as they drove waiting for her react in some way, shape, or form. Instead she kept her face blank and her eyes focused on the road ahead and sidestepped any attempt he made to comfort her; especially physically. They made it through security in the nick of time and she waved him a quick "goodbye", promising to call when she got to the hospital before hurrying towards the gangway.

* * *

"Hey Tony," Jack pushed inside his office later that evening. "Did you read over that workup I sent you?"

Tony glanced upward from his computer screen, his mind obviously somewhere else. "Yeah. Adam's coordinating with the next shift to run a search on the names Malik gave us. They'll let us know if they come up with anything."

"Great, thanks."

Tony looked back towards the computer and Jack watched him carefully for a few seconds before closing the door and moving across the room.

"Did Michelle get to Washington okay?"

"I haven't talked to her…the plane landed a few hours ago."

Jack sat down on the couch and looked at Tony seriously.

"Is she okay?"

Tony shrugged and leaned back into his chair as he scratched the side of his face. "I don't know. She's barely said two words to me since she found out."

"She just needs some space."

Tony nodded and Jack rose.

"I'm gonna head home for the night" Jack patted his shoulder. "You should too." He headed towards the door and Tony looked up in time to see him leave.

"Night…" he called after him.

* * *

Michelle flew through the hospital, convinced she'd never moved this quickly in her entire life, and amazed how it still managed to be nothing close to fast enough for her. The cab she took from the airport had been caught in the tail end of rush hour and she had checked her watch approximately every three minutes throughout the entire trip; her sense of time completely warped.

Her conscience had been nagging at her the entire flight and she'd attempted to distract herself by thinking of something else. Something that wouldn't make her picture the condition he would be in when she arrived, or the state the rest of the family would be in for that matter. They would look to her, they always did, (probably because she would inherently take control of each and every situation whether she wanted to or not), and right now she couldn't afford to feel anything.

The elevator doors opened at the 7th floor and she rushed into the corridor, searching impatiently for someone to direct her. Thankfully, the nurse's station was only a few steps to her left and she sprinted towards the women sitting at the desk

"I'm looking for Andrew Dessler." She spoke hurriedly, snapping into calm, cool, and collected federal agent mode once again.

"702." The nurse responded half-heartedly and pointed in the general vicinity of the room.

"Michelle!" Danny called her name from across the hall and the nurse shot him a disapproving look as she picked up the phone.

"What happened?" Michelle called back over the ferocious clicking of her heels on the tiled floor.

"Uncle Jim called me. They took him to the hospital early this morning and the doctor said…" Danny's voice trailed off and he looked as though he was a few seconds away from an anxiety attack. Michelle, for the first time in her life, wanted to just hit him – hard – and knock some sense into him. Now was not the time for Danny to be freaking out. It certainly wasn't going to help the situation.

"Danny…" she tried to keep her voice steady.

"He just…they told me…"

"Danny!" she blasted finally and he stopped cold. "Look at me…"

He gulped and reached for her hands.

"You okay?"

He nodded.

"What'd the doctor say?"

"I dunno Michelle, I didn't really understand everything. He's stable, that's all I know."

Michelle pushed away abruptly from Danny and ran the rest of the way to the room. Her aunt was sitting bedside looking oddly solemn; her uncle was conversing quietly with who she presumed to be the doctor and had not noticed her. She ignored them and focused on the body lying in the bed between them. After her mother's death a few years prior her dad had moved back East to live with his brother and his wife. With her working all the time and Danny busy with his own family it had seemed like the best choice for everyone.

Now it made her feel awful. She could've been there sooner if he'd still lived in LA; she should've been there sooner. Maybe if he'd been living with her or close to her she could've done something else when it happened…

As much as Michelle knew it wasn't true, she couldn't help but think it. She couldn't help but think that whatever happened as a result of this she should've been able to counter in some way; she should've been able to help.

Her breath caught in her throat when her eyes began taking in the scene in more detail. Her father was lying there with IVs sticking out of his body, his breathing heavy and labored. His eyes were closed and he was attached to a respirator.

"Honey…thank god you made it." Her aunt rose from her chair and pulled her into a tight embrace.

"How are you doing?"

Michelle winced slightly, thinking of Tony asking her that early that afternoon. She was supposed to have called him when she landed.

"I'm fine. How's…"

Jim moved away from the doctor and embraced his niece. She sighed heavily against his shoulder and hugged back.

The doctor waited for them to part before extending his hand to Michelle.

"Ms Dessler? I'm Dr. Rosenthal."

"How is he?"

The doctor eyed her apologetically for a second before releasing her hand and speaking again. "They've been running tests all afternoon. Your father's had a massive stroke and he'll need to stay here for at least a few weeks. We can't say for certain how much brain function he's likely to recover. Right now he's just lucky to be alive."

Michelle felt nauseous.

"Either way recovery is going to be a long process. It'll be a few days before we know the extent of the damage and how permanent it is."

Michelle nodded, trying to block out her surroundings while she put the pieces together.

"I'll be back at the end of my rounds." Dr. Rosenthal assured them politely before exiting the room.

Jim had been watching Michelle carefully the entire time and a few seconds later squeezed her shoulder comfortingly before grabbing his wife's arm and leading her into the hallway as well.

When Michelle was alone she let out a deep breath and took a step towards his bed. She hovered for a few seconds before pulling up a chair. A few warm tears threatened to spill out of her eyes but she did not let them, not now. This wasn't about her.

God, he looked so thin. His bones stuck out of the pasty arm the IV was dripping into and his whole body looked emaciated and fragile. She was almost afraid to touch him, for fear she would only do more harm than good. Cautiously, she reached out a hand and pulled his own off the bed; offering a feeble squeeze to his bony fingers.

He was like ice, lacking any of the warmth she'd known him to always have. It felt like he was a different person. His face was gaunt, sunken; his veins were thick and purple under a layer of rubbery skin stretched far too tightly across what was left of him.

He stirred slightly after a few minutes and Michelle looked up towards his eyes. They were open now, just barely.

"Hey," she smiled softly. He struggled to speak but no words came out, only a few muted grunts. She shook her head and pressed her lips to the back of his fingers.

"Don't talk. It's okay."

He squeezed back almost unnoticeably and her eyes welled with fresh tears. She sniffled.

"It's gonna be okay." She promised gently and realized it was probably more for her benefit than it was for his. "We'll figure everything out."

His eyelids fell shut again and she released him from her grasp, determined to remain there as long as she had to.

She hadn't really noticed anyone coming back into the room for the next hour or so. Her aunt and uncle and Danny had decided to give her some time with Andrew by herself. It was Dr. Rosenthal who finally interrupted her.

"Ms. Dessler?"

She spun around quickly.

"I was just speaking with your family. You should go home…try and get some rest."

"I'm alright, thank you." She looked away.

"There's nothing you can do right now." He reminded her and her lower lip started to quiver. She hated when there was nothing she could do; she hated feeling useless, especially when someone she cared about needed help. She wanted to do something, anything...

"Please try and get some sleep." He insisted. "It's the best thing you can do right now. We'll call you if his condition changes; I'm on-call until tomorrow morning."

Michelle sighed and reluctantly rose from her chair.

"Thanks."

* * *

Her aunt smiled at Michelle and hugged her tightly when she emerged into the fluorescent lights.

"You ready to go home, honey? You look exhausted."

"We all look exhausted." She countered easily, before allowing herself to be led out of the hospital.

She settled into the back seat of her uncle's car with Danny on the other side of the bench and felt like a kid again. She was confused, unsure of herself, and half wished someone would just take her hand and lead her through everything for a change. She didn't want to be the one in charge and the one everyone else was looking to for guidance. She just wanted to be able to think about it; for what had just happened to really truly sink in so she could lose it if she wanted to, cry if she wanted to; stop worrying about what everyone else needed her to be and just focus on her dad...

She shifted against her seat uncomfortably and felt the weight of her cell phone pressing against her leg.

Damn. Tony.

He'd have been expecting her call hours ago. She'd promised she'd call. She should've called. She wanted to call it was just…Tony. He'd ask her if she was okay, if she needed him, and all she would want to do is admit she _did_ need him, and break down in tears. All she wanted to do was ask him to take care of everything for her because she didn't feel like she could; she didn't feel like she was capable of it.

She wasn't about to call him in the car… He'd seemed so hurt earlier and she didn't want to have to explain that or justify her actions to him in front of her family. Besides he might've already figured out why she'd been so…cold from the time they'd left CTU to the time she'd stepped on the plane.

Knowing him he had figured it out.

Knowing him knowing her he had figured it out.

"Almeida."

"Hey," she managed a small smile for the first time in hours as she collapsed onto the bed and began pulling off her clothes.

"Hey," Tony sounded anxious and she could hear him moving around on the other end of the line. "What's going on?"

"I'm sorry I didn't call earlier."

"Don't worry about it." He brushed her off. "How's your dad?"

"The doctor said he had a massive stroke and they won't know how much brain function he retained for a few days at least and he probably…" she choked back a sob. "He'll probably need someone to look after him for the rest of his life."

"Honey…"

"It's my dad…" she spoke quietly. "Seeing him like that just…I can't even imagine…"

"Hey…" he cut her off. "Whatever happens you're there for him…and that's all that matters right now…"

"It's not that simple…"

"You don't know what his recovery will be like yet and until you do…"

"I know… I know. You're right."

Neither said anything for a few seconds.

"I'm gonna go to bed…We're gonna try and get back to the hospital early tomorrow."

"Alright."

"Did Jack get anything out of Malik?"

"Night shift is working up some leads for tomorrow. We'll see what happens."

She relaxed a little at the thought of work, and leaned back into her pillows.

"Let me know what you end up doing."

"Sure. I'll talk to you tomorrow?"

She forced herself to smile again. "Yeah. I'll call you when we leave the hospital."

"Okay. Night."

"Night."

* * *

It was only a few hours into her sleep when Michelle's cell phone jolted her awake…

Five minutes later the four of them stumbled into the car with Michelle behind the wheel.

* * *

Tony leaned back against his chair and tried to focus on the TV, as he had been doing unsuccessfully for the past few hours. Michelle's call hadn't done much to alleviate his worries. If anything, it had magnified them. She didn't sound…right. She didn't sound like herself. Actually, that was a lie, she sounded exactly like herself. She sounded exactly like a person who was trying her best to hang tough for everyone else.

With him she could fall to pieces, she knew that. Even if she didn't want to turn into a blubbering mess in front of everyone else she could do so in front of him. He'd take care of her. And that was, more than anything, why he'd wanted to go with her. He wanted to do for her what she did for everyone else.

Tony sighed and made to grab a beer from the fridge.

He hoped she was okay.

* * *

When she saw the doctor's face she knew. She'd pushed off the elevator just as he'd rounded a corner. She knew as soon as his eyes met hers.

"I'm so sorry…" was the only thing she really paid attention to. "There wasn't anything we could do…"

Danny latched onto her elbow and Michelle felt more than heard him start to cry. Her aunt collapsed into a chair shocked and her uncle's face fell into his hands as Michelle stood in the middle of the hallway, unsure of what to do next.

Her feet moved of their own accord, pulling her away from everyone and leading her into his room.

He was there; just as they'd left him.

Oh god, why'd she leave him? She'd already left him when she moved back to LA and she did it again. She left the hospital hours after he'd had a stroke. She'd left him alone to…

Michelle's throat swelled so much at the sight of him she was convinced she might suffocate. She probably would've if she'd even be breathing to begin with; but her breathing had stopped at that point. Oblivious now to everything that was in the room but her and that damn hospital bed, she studied it carefully; the dark form of her father contrasting sharply against the clinically white sheets.

"Ms. Dessler?" Dr. Rosenthal called her name gently but she didn't turn around. He reached forward and patted her shoulder sympathetically.

"Take your time."

She fought with all her might to stifle the sob that had risen in her throat; to swallow the lump that had formed in her chest. She blinked away the tingling that had begun in the corners of her eyes, brought a hand to her mouth and raised her eyes to the ceiling...

A few seconds later her family entered the room. Her aunt's gut wrenching sobs echoed loudly in the quiet at the instant they saw him, and Danny's own muffled cries weren't far behind. Jim lowered his gaze to the floor and dabbed the corners of his eyes with the back of his sleeve.

"Michelle…" he called to her and eased her into a tight embrace, his own vision fogged with tears.

She gulped hard and patted his back firmly before being pulled into Danny's arms and feeling him shake and sob against her.

That made it worse.

Someone crying against you always made things worse. She could feel how deeply affected he was; how devastated he was and it reminded her of exactly how devastated she was and her resolve to remain together faltered ever-so slightly. But someone had to do it. Someone had to organize the details of…she swallowed hard. Someone had to make sure everyone else was okay…

Besides, if she allowed herself the luxury of being upset right now, she wasn't sure she'd ever be able to stop crying.

She felt like she was choking; like someone had punched the wind right out of her. Her head was spinning and the colors of the room were blurring and she thought she might be sick at that very moment. She pushed Danny away, left the room without a word and ran down all seven flights of stairs until she reached the front doors of the hospital; fumbling for her phone and gasping in piercingly sharp mouthfuls of cold November air.

"Tony he…" she couldn't say it. Saying it would really make it true. Telling her husband would make it a fact, not a horrible dream that she was trying to remain in control of.

Tony's stomach fell when he heard her voice and he could almost feel her shaking through the phone.

"Michelle…"

"He's dead." She managed to steady her voice. "The hospital called a little while ago and said he was crashing and we didn't…get back in time."

"Michelle I'm-"

She cut him off.

"So I'll probably be home sooner than I thought. I think we should bury him in LA with…" she faltered.

"Your mom." He finished for her.

She brought a hand to her forehead and barely whispered: "Yeah."

A few loose tears slipped down her cheeks and she was grateful no one was around.

"I'll um…I'll start making arrangements in the morning…"

"Michelle…

"My uncle will help and I'm sure Danny will try to…they're pretty upset." She rambled on.

"Honey…"

"I can't think about it." She admitted heavily. "I can't think about it right now. Not when there's so much to do…someone has to take care of everything…"

"Why does that have to be you?"

"It just does, Tony." She snapped. "When my mom died it was me and this isn't any different."

"I'm here," he reminded her. "Okay? Whatever you need me to do."

More tears fell and she sniffled quietly.

"Thanks." She hesitated. "I should probably get back inside and see how everyone's doing. I'll call you when I know more."

"Are you gonna be okay?"

"Yeah…Yeah, I'll be fine."

The phone clicked and Michelle took a few deep, painful breaths before wiping her face clean of any remnants of tears and heading back into the hospital…


	5. Broken

**A/N: **_Thanks so much to everyone for their reviews; you guys are great! Word of warning this chapter is depressing too… I'm sorry! I thought it was necessary to include this chapter…I'll try my best to get back to happiness soon…lol : ). _

_November is hell month so no guarantees about when the next chapter will be up. These last two were pretty much already written but the next one has barely been started. Hopefully this can tide you over until I can sink my teeth into that. _

_Enjoy!_

Chapter Five – Broken

Four days later was the funeral.

Michelle had spent the last three and half days at CTU working from one stack of paperwork to another, barely even lifting her head from her desk, let alone paying much attention to anyone else. Occasionally, Gael or Adam or someone from IT would approach her with a bit of caution and ask for clarification, or how she wanted a situation handled. She never snapped at them, never even looked annoyed or frustrated by their presence. She gave them the answer they needed in exactly the way they needed it and the only indication that anything had happened was if you managed to meet her eyes.

They gave her away.

No one at CTU, Jack included, noticed her avoidance of her husband over the days. They didn't realize that the only time she spoke to him at work was when funeral technicalities had been confirmed and she needed him to arrange the afternoon and evening off for the day of.

Occasionally he would call her, but at this point he'd taken a hint and knew not to push for some sort of reaction on her part. He'd known as soon as she stepped off the plane less than twelve hours after her father's death and had taken a few steps to the side when he tried to pull her into an embrace. Just like at work, she'd avoided his gaze. Her eyes had remained fixated on the ground and her face had been an odd combination of grief and resilience.

Home was the same, if not worse... She hadn't been upset; she hadn't been much of anything. She'd been…quiet. He hadn't been allowed anywhere close enough to touch her since her return. He felt like he, if no one else, could comfort her and he liked that. He wanted to ease whatever it was she was feeling, because he felt like it was something only he could do.

It was killing her.

She had admitted that much to herself. She'd thought about it on the plane ride home, on the ride to CTU every morning, lying in bed every night with her knees pulled into her chest and her back to Tony.

This…everything…was killing her, and she wasn't sure how much longer she'd be able to cope.

Someone had to be strong. Someone had to suck it up, bite the bullet; wait it all out long enough to get everything done.

And everyone expected it to be her. Whether they intended to put that pressure on her or not, they always expected it to be Michelle who held everything together…Michelle was the rock, Michelle was the tough one, Michelle hadn't even cried when her mom died; she'd stood beside her dad remaining stoic and composed and dealt with everything that got thrown at him that she didn't think he should have to deal with himself.

It was time to be the rock again. It never even occurred to her to rely on someone else for this; it was accepted. Hell, it was tradition.

Michelle would remain steeled against her emotions, regardless of who else there was to take care of everything; she had to. Loosing herself in the devastation of it all would only make it harder to pull herself together afterwards. Every little bit of emotion that escaped her control was all that much harder to pull back in the end.

It was like a rope without any slack, with all of her emotions, fears, and anxieties on one end, threatening to pull her into oblivion, and her common sense, rational and level-headedness holding the rope in place, preventing it from falling. If it slipped a little, it got all that much harder to hold. If it slipped too much she'd never be able to pull it back up.

She would deal with it; she had no other choice.

* * *

Michelle's aunt and uncle had flown into LA with her father's body. They were staying at a hotel a few minutes from the cemetery, along with anyone else visiting for the occasion. Most of his friends were still living in LA, or close to it, reaffirming that her decision to bury him there had been the right one. 

She would've done it anyway.

That too, was partially self-motivated. She needed him close if nothing else. She needed to know that he was there on some level.

The gravesite was packed full of people, most bearing some semblance of tears or emotion, all expressing their condolences to Michelle and Danny. It was an unusually drizzly day with lots of fog, befitting the occasion. At one point while she was waiting for everyone to arrive, Danny's kids had disappeared from their mother to check on their aunt.

"Aunt Michelle…" his five year old, Kristen, tugged at her jacket.

"Hi honey," she smiled. "How are you?"

"Are you sad?" Kristen asked in confusion, glancing with a furrowed brow at her blubbering father a few feet away. Tony, who had been standing beside Michelle turned abruptly towards her at this and watched as she smiled sympathetically at her niece.

"Of course I'm sad." She patted down fly-aways atop the girl's head and smoothed out a few strands of hair.

"You don't look sad…" Kristen interrupted her, obviously oblivious to the subtle gestures. "Not like daddy."

"Give me a hug." Michelle squeezed her warmly before returning Kristen to her mother.

Tony did not know what to do. He vaguely wondered when Michelle had turned so cold, so quickly. There had been a distinct iciness to her voice when everyone had come to greet her and he'd noticed a few baffled looks exchanged between them, probably wondering what kind of daughter, even a coldhearted government employee, didn't shed a tear at her father's funeral. Danny had sniffled and wiped his eyes on the back of his sleeves numerous times, while Michelle remained tight-lipped and erect and to those who didn't know any better, horribly callous.

It just proved how little they knew about her.

* * *

"How are you doing sweetie?" her uncle approached cautiously, his own form shaking slightly as it clung to hers. Her control wavered at this. She'd never seen him so upset and felt herself becoming overwhelmed by it.

Tony continued to watch her silently. His heart breaking a little more each time he saw her eyes move towards the sky. It sickened him that she felt like she couldn't lose her composure, that everyone relied on her so heavily for everything. He felt the urge to pull her in tightly, despite her attempts to resist, and watch her fall apart; to let her know that he could do for her what she did for everyone else.

* * *

Those who had not been in tears as they entered the gravesite were certainly reduced to them as they all watched the coffin be lowered into the ground. A few crowded under umbrellas as the rain thickened, and ventured towards the center of the circle only to toss a flower or two onto the coffin.

Michelle remained together throughout the entire proceedings... even when her uncle handed her a white lily that she twirled a few times between her fingers before dropping it onto the coffin at the very last second.

Tony reached for her hand when she came back to stand beside him. Her face was coated with raindrops, and Tony was convinced he saw a tear fall, intermingled with them. She quickly pulled away.

* * *

By the time they'd made it to the reception hall everyone seemed to have calmed down. Most took it upon themselves to offer the family whatever they needed and more than a few questioned Tony on his connection to the deceased. 

"I'm Michelle's husband." he heard himself say and noted that he received some curious glances. He recognized no one and felt like he was wandering around aimlessly while Michelle continued to shake hands with everyone who approached her. She even smiled politely a couple of times and was still, most definitely avoiding him.

"Y'know, most people would want their husbands to stick with them..." Alicia interrupted Michelle's daydream.

A hand came to her brow. "I know...I've been horrible but I just..." she gazed at her friend, obviously frustrated.

"You're allowed to get upset Michelle."

"I can't yet." she managed to stutter, her voice quivering and her eyes glossing over. "I just...I don't know how I'm supposed to handle this."

Alicia squeezed her arm.

"You don't have to handle it at all…You're _not_ supposed to. That's why we're here. You don't have to be in control of everything..."

Michelle sniffled. "I'm fine. I just need to get through these next few hours."

"Michelle…you're putting yourself through hell for no reason. No one expects anything of you…This isn't work, this isn't your job, your dad died and no one would think anything less of you if you showed some sort of emotion…"

"If I do everyone else…Danny…"

"This isn't about everyone needing you, Michelle." Her voice became firm and, unintentionally, a little accusatory. "This is about you forcing everyone to rely on you so you don't have to rely on anyone else."

Michelle's jaw dropped slightly and she didn't know how to respond.

"I don't…"

"Yes you do. You want to be responsible for everything because then you don't have to deal with how upset you are…"

"You make it sound like I'm…"

"It's the way you are. It's the way you've always been; trust me. And it's alright, and I love you and your inherent need to be in control of everything…but it is _okay_ to let someone else take care of you..."

"I know that." Michelle snapped in a hushed voice. Irritated she was being treated like a ten year old.

"Do you? Because right now your at your dad's funeral and your husband, who probably would never admit how much you've been worrying him these past few days, is on the other side of the room because you've been pushing him away."

Michelle brought a hand to her face.

"I don't know what'll happen if I…"

Alicia embraced her firmly. "No one expects anything of you…"

She nodded in lieu of actually verbalizing how grateful she really was.

"By the way...Steve's looking for you."

Michelle's eyes widened and her mouth hung slightly agape.

"He came?"

It was Alicia's turned to nod, though she winced internally when she heard Michelle's voice crack. She'd explicitly asked Steve, the ex-boyfriend, not to come and Michelle's reaction was exactly what she had wanted to avoid. Steve had been at her mom's funeral…Michelle had slept with him that night, almost two years after they'd broken up, and had awoken to quite the tongue lashing from Alicia herself; something about using sex for comfort…

Steve being there now just seemed too…wrong.

"I called him because I thought he'd want to send flowers or something but he uh...seemed pretty adamant about being here."

For the first time since everyone had crowded into the room Michelle took the time to scan each occupant carefully. She felt herself getting a little choked up when Steve smiled sadly and made his way towards her.

"You okay?" he asked, evidently concerned

"Yeah, thanks for coming."

Steve sighed, drawing her tightly against him and mumbling condolences in her ear. Michelle had to take a deep breath and pull back quickly, feeling herself becoming emotional. Tony was watching her carefully, ignorant of what someone was saying to him, and she couldn't help but notice the entirely hurt look he wore and feel guilty.

He had to understand though; he had to understand why she had been so adamant about maintaining her distance from him. It wasn't that she didn't want him to see her upset; quite the opposite. She'd fallen to pieces in front of him on more than one occasion and he was certainly one of the, if not the only person she felt comfortable doing so with.

She just wasn't ready yet.

* * *

The reception was long, and drawn out, and it seemed like an eternity before everyone had finally left and only Danny, and Alicia remained. They insisted Michelle leave and get some rest, as she had been the one making all the arrangements for the past few days. Michelle shook her head, maintaining she was fine and had gone with less sleep many a time. 

Soon they were all making their way outside to their respective cars.

Hugs were shared, and a few more tears as Alicia, made her way to the hotel and Danny clamored into a cab after having argued with his sister for several minutes that he'd barely had anything to drink and was fine to drive himself home. When everyone had gone Michelle was left standing in the middle of the parking lot, a little dumbfounded.

* * *

Tony led her into the house, watching her carefully; she'd gone from resolute to unresponsive all in the matter of a few seconds. 

"I'm gonna change…" he whispered quietly, not wanting to disturb whatever she'd been thinking about. She nodded.

"I'm gonna make some coffee, you want some?"

"Sure …"

He left and Michelle was alone.

Quiet.

She made her way to the counter and went to work filling the filter with ground coffee beans.

Dead…he was _dead…_

She filled the coffeemaker with water, enough for six cups exactly, spending unhealthy amount of times measuring.

_All the times he'd sat up with her watching Disney movies…all the times he'd fallen asleep in her bed when she was too afraid to be by herself…_

She placed the water and the filter in their respective positions and closed up the coffeemaker and turned it on.

_A part of her, an optimistic part that rarely got any attention these days, had even believed he could pull through this entirely. That her dad would always be there...especially after her mom…She needed him to be there. _

The coffee began dripping into the pot and Michelle gasped, not knowing how much longer she could hold everything back. She leaned over the counter and steadied herself with both hands, fighting for breath.

_He was the only person who, for her whole life, she'd been able to count on for absolutely anything, to love her unconditionally even when she feared no one else could…and she'd left him…she'd left him alone when he'd needed her. He never would've done that…she just left him alone to die…_

And this time, when the emotion rose in her throat, she - whether because of her inability to or her unwillingness to – couldn't hold back any longer.

The tears fell, one after the other, in a relentless stream, each new one replacing its predecessor instantly. She shook violently, allowing her head to fall into her hand as she remained standing, back pressed against the counter.

Footsteps could be heard in increasing volume that stopped suddenly and Michelle knew she was alone no longer.

"Michelle?" Tony whispered over her raspy breaths.

She could not bring herself to look at him, for that required energy that she did not have at the moment. Instead she pointlessly tried to compose herself.

"Wh-what?" she choked as she wiped the tears from her cheeks and felt the sobs return almost instantly. She covered her mouth.

"Michelle…" Tony crossed the room until he was standing by her side. He touched her shoulder gently and Michelle cringed; for succumbing to Tony would mean surrendering any control she was determined to keep. If she let someone else look after her she had no reason to hold back...and it scared her to think about what might happen if she didn't...

"Honey, c'mon…" he begged, voice cracking and finding her waist with one arm. He worried about how cold she had become in the last few minutes, and rubbed her arms up and down.

Michelle's eyes closed, tears starting to fall again. She no longer had the strength to push Tony away and when he tried to pull her into his arms this time, she relented.

Tony felt her collapse against him and squeezed more tightly, rubbing her back in soft, gentle circles as she sobbed uninhibitedly into his chest, convinced she would make herself sick before she stopped crying.

He sighed almost in relief and rested his head on top of hers. "It's okay…I've got you…" a hand found its way up her back. He kissed her hair and squeezed tighter. "I've got you…"

* * *

Michelle was curled up at the foot of her bed, hands resting between her cheek and the mattress, staring at the wall in front of her. Tony entered carrying a mug of tea and placed it on the nightstand. Michelle did not look up as he sat beside her on the edge of the bed. 

Neither spoke. Tony was unsure of what to say. Michelle was afraid she'd start crying again if she opened her mouth, having been unable to stop the tears for the better part of the evening.

Her eyes were puffy and swollen and her skin felt stretched and strained over her bones, as if all the moisture had been expelled from it.

Tony managed to slip an arm between Michelle's stomach and the bed, pulling her up against him; much like one would a wounded animal. The feeling of herself being dragged across the bedspread seemed to snap Michelle out of her reverie and she adjusted her weight accordingly, crawling towards Tony's chest. She settled against him and closed her eyes, wishing she could sleep until it all went away.

Tony nudged the mug into her hands and supported her weight while she took a sip. He placed it back on the nightstand and rubbed her arm firmly, reaffirming his presence.

"I…I can't believe he's..."

Tony chose not to say anything. Having had his experience dealing with other people's losses, he knew it better not to say anything. He just wished he could make Michelle stop hurting.

"I left him, Tony."

"You couldn't have known…"

"I left him. I left him when I moved back to LA, and then I left him at the hospital that night…"

"Michelle…" he interrupted her softly and she said nothing else.

She closed her eyes and a few more tears fell. Tony squeezed more tightly as she buried her head into his chest, trying to muffle any sobs that threatened to escape.

Finally, he chanced a few words.

"What do you want to do, honey?"

Michelle did not look at him when she spoke. "Nothing."

Tony bit his lip. She looked so helpless. He'd never seen Michelle like this before; like she really was defeated. There was no way of fixing this, nothing she could do to turn the tables. It was done and she just had to deal with it.

Tony reached down and pulled a blanket off the floor, moving further into the pillows and covering them with it, surrounding Michelle with both arms.

"Alright..."

His fingers raked her hair gently and her head fell against an exposed part of his chest, warming it with tears.

* * *

When the sun arose the next morning neither had slept a wink. Michelle pulled herself out of Tony's arms and began dressing. 

"What are you doin'?" he asked, watching her button up her blouse.

She turned around and looked at him determinedly. "I'm going to work…"

Tony knew not to argue; not to insist she take the day off. She was doing what she needed to do and he would not get in the way. She would go to work and she would get back into her routine like nothing had changed. This is what Michelle needed to do to overcome her grief, and however she chose to do it, he would be there.


	6. Somewhere in the World It's Christmas

Chapter Six – Somewhere in the World it's Christmas

She realized it was raining heavily before her eyes even opened. Icy cold pellets rapped against the window and she shivered and pulled the blankets around her more tightly.

Christmas Eve.

God damn it.

She remembered exactly what she was doing last Christmas Eve at this time. Last Christmas Eve at this time she was in Washington with Danny, and Alicia and…her dad. She tried in vain to push the thought out of her head and then rolled over to check the alarm clock, wondering how much time she had before it would be blasting Tony awake.

God damn it.

Tony proposed a year ago today. Well… a year ago at midnight on Christmas. What was arguably the best moment of her life now only served to remind her of everything horrible that had happened since…These days the bad always seemed to overpower the good and she hated that; she hated that after her little breakdown following the funeral she'd barely let Tony touch her. She hated that in the past five weeks, not even their fifth month of marriage, they hadn't had sex once and it was, without a doubt, because of her. It was her who had been pulling away every time he kissed her with anything remotely resembling passion; it was her that had been making a point to go to bed before him just because she didn't want to have to see his rejected expression when she told him she, yet again, didn't feel like it that night.

In truth, she didn't know why she was doing it. She was just…withdrawing; pulling away from him for no apparent reason. It could, quite possibly, have had something to do with feeling guilty for being happy so soon after _his_ death; feeling guilty for carrying on as though nothing had happened.

The worst part was Tony hadn't even said anything about it. He'd looked concerned the first few times and gradually concern had turned into frustration, but he never brought it up. He'd given her space, though she didn't know how much longer he'd be so understanding. She didn't want it to last any longer anyway. She missed him. She missed letting her mind wander to what would go on when they came home from work when the days were just a little too dull for her liking; she missed feeling excited, turned on…whatever. She missed feeling loved…She missed _feeling_ in general.

It wasn't fair to her husband and she was sick of being an empty shell of what she used to be.

"Tony…" she sidled over to his side of the bed and draped her arm across his stomach.

He stirred and groaned a little.

"Tony…" she tried again and glided her fingers through his hair.

His eyes opened and he looked confused at seeing her hovering over him.

"What's wrong?" he asked, frowning as he propped himself onto his elbows, his eyes and voice still cloudy from sleep.

She sighed heavily and lowered her lips to his.

"I'm sorry."

"You don't have to apologize…" he shifted slightly beneath her. There hadn't been much to her kiss but it was as different as could be from what he'd been getting for the past month. It wasn't the least bit platonic, her lips were open and moist and the feeling lingered for a few seconds even after she'd pulled away.

"Yes I do. It was never about you, any of it…"

"I know."

"I'm sorry." She repeated earnestly and he smiled and kissed her as his hand crept into the small of her back and he flipped them over so she was pressed against the mattress...

They made love before work that morning, and when she stepped inside CTU she was convinced everyone in the building could tell because Tony, for the first time in ages, didn't look like he wanted to bite someone's head off, and she just felt…better. She was glowing and happy, like an enormous amount of tension had been relieved, and was anxious for the day to end so they could get back home and continue to make up for lost time.

* * *

Work was the most enjoyable it had been in a long time, Michelle realized as the day progressed without incident. Paperwork seemed to be the general theme and it was remarkable how relaxed the entire office was. Adam and Chloe were being relatively civil towards each other, and even made a point to strike up a conversation over plans for the following day. Gael arrived at Michelle's desk with a pre-made cup of coffee and a bagel around lunchtime.

She raised an eyebrow. "What's this for?"

"Bribe." He smiled at her. "I thought it might tear you away from those systems checklists…"

She smiled. "Thanks."

He situated himself opposite her and took a sip from his own mug.

"You look like you're having a better morning…"

Michelle nodded and felt the color creep into her cheeks.

"You could say that…"

"Well I'm glad…" he patted her arm and she smiled again. "Losing parents isn't easy."

Michelle allowed the words to sink in a bit before interrupting the silence that had followed.

"So what are you doing for Christmas?" she asked, taking a sip from her own mug.

"Some family's coming over. It's our turn to make dinner this year. The kids open presents together, we all go to church, it's quite the spectacle."

Michelle laughed. "I can imagine."

"What about you?"

She felt a slight pang hit her somewhere in the pit of her stomach but ignored it.

"Last year we took a few days off to visit…family. This year it's just me and Tony."

Gael smiled. "That sounds nice and _quiet_."

She nodded. "Yes it does.

* * *

It was a little over seven uneventful hours later when Tony dialed her extension.

"Hey," he sighed heavily into the receiver, thinking about nothing but getting both of them home as quickly as possible. The day hadn't been quite as relaxing for him since, with Jack off, he'd been dealing with everyone from District and Division almost entirely on his own.

"Hey," she beamed. "How's it going?"

"Tell me you're ready to get the hell out of here…" he stated abruptly and she laughed aloud, drawing attention from a few of the people walking across the bullpen.

"I'm ready when you are."

He grinned and rolled the phone cord back and forth between his fingers a few times before responding.

"Ten minutes."

"I'll be ready."

Exiting CTU took a little longer than usual that night. Unless a terrorist threat emerged in the next 24 hours no one would be making an appearance in the office until the 26th, save for the skeleton shift.

"Have a good Christmas, guys." A few people called to Tony and Michelle as they made their way outside the building. A few more stopped to chat for a moment about holiday plans until everyone got tired of making small talk and went their separate ways.

By the time they'd made it onto the highway Michelle had started to doze with her forehead tilted against the window. Tony relaxed at the sight, feeling as though things were finally getting back to normal. She hadn't exactly been sleeping well for the past few weeks, tossing and turning a lot without ever really waking up. There'd been one occasion where he'd been working while she had the day off and he couldn't help but call a little more frequently than he probably should've, worried about what might happen if she was left alone for too long and convinced that after the way she'd been acting nothing would surprise him.

But now she looked at ease and content. He'd always known she'd come to terms with everything in her own time but the longer it went on and the worse she got the more anxious he'd become. Throwing one more glance in her direction and noting the goosebumps all over her bare legs, he cranked up the heat and squeezed the top of her knee before focusing back on the road.

They _really_ needed this day off together.

* * *

"_What_ are you watching?" He feared the answer as he entered the room and handed her a blanket.

"Sound of Music." She stated clearly, without tearing herself away from the screen.

He rolled his eyes discretely, but she caught him.

"I haven't seen it in years." She rationalized and he conceded.

"_Alright_…" he scooted her over on the couch and made room for himself, sliding his arms around her waist and resting his head against her chest, fully prepared to doze off before the movie ended.

"It's almost finished anyway." She stroked the top of his head with a slight smirk on her face and he just nuzzled further into her, his hands gently brushing inside her shirt and beneath the waistband of her sweats. When she finally announced it was over he slid himself up her body and captured her lips with his, while one hand found the remote and managed to shut off the TV.

She laughed against his mouth and didn't even bother protesting; delighting instead in the warm feeling his body sealing tightly around hers gave, and the heat of his lips against her bare shoulder.

"Remember last Christmas?" she stated suddenly and he pulled back with a pained look on his face.

He hesitated and then nodded slowly.

When she managed a smile he relaxed and tucked an errant curl behind her ear.

"I know how I've been acting these days but um…despite everything I've said or done I don't know how…" she took a deep breath. "I don't know how I would've gotten through all of this without you."

Her eyes began to prickle with tears as she spoke and she blinked them away quickly.

"Michelle I'm always here for you, no matter what…"

"I know." She sniffled back a few loose tears.

He sighed heavily and brushed them from her cheeks. "Good."

* * *

The next morning he awoke to her sliding back into bed with two mugs of coffee in hand. They uttered 'Merry Christmases' briefly, hers tickling his skin as she leaned in for a kiss and settled down beside him.

"I like how it's just us." She said contentedly; resting back against her pillow and taking a sip from her mug.

"No wasting half of our vacation on a plane…"

He nodded. "No running through airports at the last possible second trying to _catch_ a plane…"

"That's true…" she remembered now. "What were you planning on doing if you didn't make it?"

"What do you mean?" he raised an eyebrow and lowered her mug so he could see her face.

"I mean if Chappelle hadn't let you go you never could've proposed on Christmas…what were you gonna do?"

He cocked his head to one side in surprise and half his mouth twitched upwards.

"I wasn't planning on proposing over Christmas…I didn't decide to do it until you were already in DC…"

She raised her eyebrows. "Really?"

"Uh huh…It didn't really hit me until I was sitting at CTU that afternoon that I wanted to do it…I was more angry at us not spending Christmas together than at Ryan making me work at the last minute. I just wanted to be with you; it didn't really matter where." He glanced away from her in mild embarrassment when he saw her befuddled look turn into a huge grin.

"But you had a ring…"

"Yeah…I uh…I bought that a couple of weeks before. I didn't know how or when I was gonna do it, just that I was gonna do it eventually. So it wasn't something I came up with in the eleventh hour…" he assured her. "I knew I wanted to marry you long before that."

He blushed slightly when she grinned, if possible, even wider. She scooted over and wordlessly pressed a kiss into his cheek.

He smiled and rubbed the back of her arm before taking a sip from his own mug.

"Besides if I hadn't done it then I would've had a hell of a time coming up with an idea…"

Michelle smiled and he squeezed her arm affectionately.

"Knowing me I'd probably have blurted it out when you were trying to sleep or something…"

"Probably…" she beamed. "And I probably would've said yes…"

"Just probably, huh?" he poked her and she shrugged disinterestedly. He elbowed her in the side and she laughed loudly, before gently lambasting him for almost spilling her coffee.

* * *

"Okay…got it." She scuttled across the titled floor having just retrieved his Christmas present from her hiding place in the spare room. His was somewhere in the kitchen amongst the pots and pans, knowing those were drawers she'd never, in a million years have any reason to open unless it be under his guidance.

"Me too." He grinned and placed a small package in front of her.

They settled down in front of the electric fireplace, which he'd flicked on at the last minute merely for atmosphere, her legs crossed beneath her and his back resting against the wall.

"You first," she pushed the package towards him and watched as he pulled back the wrapping curiously. When its contents were unveiled he shot her an incredulous look.

"Michelle…"

It was the almost sickeningly expensive watch that had happened to catch his eye a few months before. It was rare he actually pointed something she could give as a decent gift so when it happened she really couldn't justify not buying it.

"You needed a new watch anyway." She defended.

"Yeah, not this one… I can't believe you…"

"Well…Isn't it better I got the one you really liked?" she explained calmly. "It's just a watch, Tony."

"Exactly. There's no reason to spend-"

She touched his cheek and pressed their lips together lightly. "Don't start."

He shook his head with a mix of amused tolerance and adoration.

"Thank you."

When Michelle had unwrapped her gift, she rolled her eyes at having been told off for spending too much and studied the two velvet cases, one long and slim and the other square, before pulling back the lid of the bigger one.

It contained a single gold chain with a square cut diamond dangling from it. The other case was a set of matching earrings.

Michelle sighed. "They're gorgeous. Thank you." She leaned in to kiss him again, mumbling "You spent too much." against his mouth at the last second.

"So did you." He reminded her gently, deciding his Christmas present had been more about Michelle turning back into Michelle than anything that came in a box.

* * *

Michelle was just coming out of the shower when she heard a perfectly distinct sound coming from the den. The notes were slow, sensual, and the lyrics chilled her to the bone. She loved this song. It was her favorite. Anxious to see what was happening, she threw on her robe and ran out to the source of the music.

"Thought that might get ya…" Tony turned around from the CD player and grinned when she entered.

She tilted her head to one side and smiled.

"This is my..."

Tony bit his lip. "Yeah, I know…" he held out a hand.

"Well at least dance with me…" he half-ordered, inflecting a hint of exasperation into his voice.

Michelle inclined her head slightly and noticed for the first time that the few major pieces of furniture had been pushed haphazardly to one side, clearing some space. The corners of her lips twitched into the smile that drove him absolutely crazy and she took the hand.

"This is pretty romantic of you, Almeida." She teased as he pulled her to the center of the room.

Grinning, Tony locked her firmly in place in his arms. "I try…"

It was near the end of the song when he tipped her head back and nudged her mouth against his as her arms encircled around his neck and he lifted her slightly off the ground. For a few minutes they stood like this: his mouth pressed hard against hers while holding her tightly against his body. His hands maneuvered from her face and hair to the belt of her robe and he bit down gently on her lower lip as he slipped his tongue into her mouth. She moaned softly, but her hands pulled his away from the knot they'd begun working on.

"We should…" his lips had trailed down to her neck and she had to close her eyes for a second and focus on what she was supposed to be saying.

"Upstairs…" she finally managed before finding his mouth again. He nodded, their foreheads resting together, and scooped her legs out from underneath her before taking them both up the stairs.

Despite her being unable to form intelligible sentences amidst her haze, Michelle had eliminated his shirt before he'd even gotten her on the bed. His bare chest heat pressed snugly against her as one hand tangled in her curls while the other pulled her body into his. She moaned again, louder this time, and gasped unintentionally when he went back to work on the knot.

"You couldn't have made this a little easier for me?" he muttered in obvious aggravation; the lightheartedness fighting its way back in amongst all the intensity.

She grinned against his lips and had to concentrate hard on speaking again when he gave up on the knot for the time being and made his way down her collarbone.

"I didn't know this was the plan…"

"Assume…always assume…" he grumbled.

She laughed and he stopped what he was doing.

"Hey can ya blame me? It's been a long couple of weeks…"

"It's been less than a day…" she snickered.

"Immediately following a long couple of weeks…"

Again, she laughed, but this time hesitantly.

He lifted his head long enough to catch the look on her face; slightly wounded mixed with lots of guilt.

With a heavy sigh, he brushed the hair from her forehead; cursing himself for being so insensitive.

"I'm sorry."

"No…" she shook her head, feeling like a complete idiot for ruining everything yet again. "You're right, I've been…"

He cut her off with a soft kiss to her lips, then eyelids, cheeks and lips again, all the while muttering "sorries" softly against her skin.

"I shouldn't have said that."

"You're right though." She told him through a quavering voice and he shook his head firmly.

"That doesn't make it okay." He cupped her face and his thumb brushed across her cheek.

She smiled and sat up a little, pressing her lips against his and sighing softly.

"Forget it." She said simply and went to work helping him undo her robe.

They spent a long time kissing, even after their clothes were completely removed. He kissed her nose, her knees and everything in between, leaving her whole body tingling when he finally moved below her belly button. She managed to muffle a yell when the orgasm overtook her, and fell back against the pillows, her body slick with sweat and her fingers barely finding the energy to caress his face.

Michelle waited a few moments before pushing him over onto his back and positioning herself carefully as she directed him inside of her. She fought hard to control their rhythm, her body's spasms making it difficult. His hand reached behind her head and tugged her mouth to his as he rolled them over and laced her fingers through his. She climaxed violently in what he was convinced was the second before him, and he collapsed euphorically with his nose buried in the crook of her neck.

A little while later she rolled them over gently, her hair hanging loosely around her face in thick, untamed curls. Her hands pressed down into the mattress as she leaned in a little closer to him.

"I love you."

He smiled and one hand stroked the bare skin of the small of her back while the other pushed the hair out of her eyes and cupped her face.

"I love you too."

She smiled and kissed him firmly, her lips parting slightly and her tongue barely touching his bottom lip before he rolled them back over to her side of the bed and pulled away; his fingers unable to control themselves from brushing more hair across her forehead and burying deeply into it.

"I just want you happy..."

"I'm happy." She confirmed, barely giving him time to finish the sentence.

He raised an eyebrow mischievously. "You sure?"

She beamed and nodded.

For a few seconds he studied her, his hands still touching her hair.

"What do you want…" He ordered in such a voice that she had to laugh.

"Right now, whatever you want…"

"I don't want anything."

He tickled her side and she squealed. "You're lying…"

"No…I'm…not…" she managed between giggles.

He chuckled as she squealed and squirmed against him before finally relenting with a heavy sigh.

When her eyes met his again he leaned in for one more kiss before bringing his cheek to rest against her chest, while his arms encircled her firmly.

She had to bite back a few tears when he rolled her back on top of him and her head got buried between his neck and shoulder. Her fingers found his and his hand continued to stroke her hair until he dozed. She breathed happily and snuggled further against him.

_Trust me, Almeida…you're all I want. _


	7. Out of the Frying Pan

**A/N: **_Finallyyyyyyyyyy got finished this chapter! Thanks so much to everyone who reviewed the last one, you guys are awesome : ). I'm just warning you now, my technical jargon is completely and totally made up so bear with me in that sense…it serves its purpose in the plot and that's about it…lol. _

Chapter Seven – Out of the Frying Pan

Tony entered the kitchen with his hair still slightly damp from the shower. He rubbed the excess aftershave around his neck and collar.

"Hey…" Michelle spun around with two mugs of coffee in hand. She placed one in front of him and leaned over, breathing deeply as she placed a quick kiss on the side of his neck. He smiled slightly and rubbed her back.

"We have to leave in five…" he reminded her after a quick check of his watch. "I have that briefing with District at 8."

She nodded and stifled a yawn, already anxious for the day to be over.

* * *

"Michelle! Get in here!" Tony yelled from the Conference room. She quickly turned to Adam. 

"Finish up here and report back to me."

She slipped quietly into the seat next to Tony just as Ryan's voice came over the speakerphone.

"Alright Ryan, we're all here." Tony scanned the room quickly and nodded as Jack stepped inside at the last second.

"For the past three hours we've been accumulating Intel on a militia group out of the Eastern Czech Republic. Langley and District concur that a hit will be taking place in Los Angeles."

"When?" Michelle asked, shooting a glance in Tony's direction.

"We don't know."

"What's the target?" Jack added.

"We don't know."

"Well what _do_ we know, Ryan?" Tony spat in obvious aggravation.

"Joseph Ames landed at LAX twelve hours ago. He was sent on CTU's behalf to Europe six years ago to infiltrate this sector and is our main source of information. Division's sending over his file. Start working up any potential leads he's given us."

Tony shifted uncomfortably in his chair and glanced at Jack momentarily before looking back at the video monitor.

A few minutes later the department heads exited the Conference room with their respective assignments.

Jack approached Tony the instant the room had cleared. Michelle glanced over her shoulder and raised her eyebrows curiously, as Tony scratched the side of his face and they began to converse in soft whispers. Jack followed his gaze to Michelle and nodded slowly in her direction.

"Michelle…" she spun on her heel and was at their side in half a second.

"What's up?"

"Six years ago Ames was working for CTU, stationed in Europe." Jack explained as Michelle listened intently.

"You know him?"

They both nodded warily.

"And there's a chance he's turned…"

"That's what we need to find out." Jack continued. "A couple years into the assignment Division lost contact with him for six months…"

"And he was working at CTU the same time Nina Myers was…" Tony interjected. "It's enough to make me suspicious."

Jack agreed. "His alias is Joseph Marks. See if there's anything you can find out that'll fill in the gaps."

"This has to be kept quiet." Tony went on.

"What about Chappelle?"

Both men shook their heads.

"If we find something concrete we'll bring Ryan into this, but until then we can't risk Ames finding out we're suspicious." Jack said.

Michelle looked between them both uncertainly.

"If we don't say anything, information regarding protocols for every other agency on board will get passed onto Ames…" she stated in a hushed voice.

"And if we exchange too much faulty information and ignore any leads he'll know we're on to him." Tony reminded her.

"Okay…" she scanned the bullpen. "I'll let you know what I find."

* * *

Michelle climbed the stairs briskly, manila folder in hand. She pushed through the glass door where Tony and Jack were waiting. 

Jack sighed heavily.

"How's the workup on Ames coming?"

"Done." she tossed the packet on the desk and they waited for her to continue.

"It'll be a tough sell to convince anyone he's flipped. We have footage of him meeting with Arms dealers, but ten minutes afterwards he placed a call to Division. He claims his disappearance was the result of a covert operation and any contact with the outside world would've compromised his position. The only thing that's slightly unusual is that in a follow-up report he sent one month afterwards there's a small sequence of numbers and letters that make absolutely no sense. Whoever analyzed it described it as a combination of the routing ID and the IP address, but there are way too many letters for that to be accurate."

"So what do you think it is?" Tony asked as both he and Jack scanned the sheet.

"As of right now, I'm not sure. It could be encrypted, it could be a security code, or…" she bit her lip. "It could be exactly what it was described as, the source IP address with more than one routing ID." She raised her eyebrows expectantly.

"Meaning he had it routed to someone else before we received it." Jack rose from his seat and approached her seriously.

"Were you able to figure out who he sent it to at Division?"

She shook her head slowly. "The terminal ID doesn't even exist anymore, this was four years ago. It could be anyone who worked there at the time…and now the only person who's still there is Ryan."

"What about the second routing ID?" Tony probed, leaning back in his chair and folding his arms across his chest.

Michelle reached into the folder and pulled out another sheet of paper.

"Michael McCarthy." She tossed the picture on the desk. "He's had the same laptop for almost seven years. I'm surprised it still running…"

"How do we know that?"

"It's got a government chip embedded in the hard drive for recognition."

"He worked for the government?" Tony asked, with a furrowed brow.

"No. He's a large-scale private contractor. Companies have been hiring him since he was fresh out of college to do work abroad…family business. He's designed security facilities for a bunch of different European governments… All business dealings were done under the table."

They all processed this information carefully for a moment.

"McCarthy's our only lead. We need to pick him up and get something out of him before we can bring this to Chappelle." Tony concluded and Jack reached into the file.

"You have an address?"

Michelle nodded and handed it to him.

"Beverly Hills."

"Do you want me to assemble a tac team?"

Jack shook his head. "We can't bring anyone else into this until Division knows."

"I can put together surveillance package so you can remain in contact with Tony…"

"Will it take long?"

She shook her head. "Two minutes."

Jack started to head towards the door. "I'll meet you downstairs in five then," he squeezed Michelle's arm as he moved past her.

"Great work, Michelle."

* * *

"This is Bauer." Jack snapped open the cell phone as he steered the SUV back onto the main road. 

"Jack it's me, where are you?"

Jack shot an aggravated glance into the review mirror at the pair now huddled together in the backseat of car. The woman was ghostly pale and clung to the man, who looked just as afraid.

"There was a problem."

Tony hung his head. "What?"

"His girlfriend was home."

"_Fiancé…_" the woman hissed from behind, finding her nerve. The dark hair hanging loosely around her face didn't mask the angry color rising in her cheeks.

"She's with you?"

"Yeah. I'm bringing them both in for questioning now. I'm about twenty minutes out."

"This is so illegal!" she shouted angrily and this time Tony heard.

"You think she knows anything?" he probed, lowering his voice slightly

Jack glanced at her again and studied her face for a few seconds. Despite her clenched jaw and pinched lips she looked scared. Not guilty just…anxious, uncertain.

"No."

"Alright, I'll have everything ready when you get here."

"Thanks."

* * *

It was Michelle who met Jack at the entrance to CTU and ushered both him and the couple into the corridor. 

"Hammond's been calling." She warned him, a hint of bitterness in her voice. "He wants to know why we haven't yielded any leads on Ames…as if we're the only ones."

Jack sighed. "He knows I never trusted Ames. We have to get something significant out of these guys _now_."

"We cleared Holding 1 for you…" she explained as she pushed open the door. "And whenever you're ready, Interrogation is free."

"Are you observing?"

She nodded. "Tony can't leave without anyone getting too suspicious…"

Jack said nothing, but started to pace back and forth a few times.

"How far do you want to push him?" she asked quietly.

He bit his lip. "Right now he's just scared…so I'm hoping that means he'll cooperate…" he raised his eyes to the glass as a pair of guards escorted him into the Interrogation room. "But have Richard's on standby just in case."

She picked up the phone and started dialing.

* * *

When Tony pushed through the door less than half an hour later, followed closely by Adam, Michelle rose in surprise. 

"Chappelle just called me. District has evidence supporting the claim that Ames flipped. They're on board." He came to stand beside her and nodded for Adam to take a seat.

"How's he doing?"

She sighed. "He hasn't said anything yet; barely even opened his mouth. Jack's got Richards on standby."

Tony reached for a headset.

"Jack, I need you out here."

Jack rose from his position hunched over the table and nodded, before exiting the room.

He listened carefully as Tony explained the situation.

"They have a location on Ames." He stated finally.

"I want to lead the field unit." Jack told him firmly. "No one at Division or District knows Ames well enough…"

"I know. Chapelle's gonna let CTU head it up. Division and LAPD will back you up. Field team's assembling now."

"What about McCarthy?" Michelle reminded them. "Whether we get Ames or not there's still a chance he's hiding something…"

"Yeah, I know. You're gonna interrogate him; Gael will be down in a minute to back you up. I'll be on the floor running tactical if you find anything."

They were halfway out the door when Jack turned around at the last minute and faced Michelle.

"Push him as hard as you have to." He told her firmly.

She fought the urge to gulp and agreed. Then they were gone.

* * *

"Adam, get Gael down here now." Michelle stated firmly as she stepped into the hall, hoping her nerves didn't get the best of her. She wasn't too keen to be the one authorizing the use of drugs on any one individual. Watching it was one thing, but actually being there was different. 

She noticed Gael approaching and motioned him inside, before taking a deep breath and following.

"I need to finish interrogating McCarthy." She explained. "Give me a few minutes with him and then send down Richards."

"No problem." Gael sat down beside Adam and adjusted his headset. "Whenever you're ready…"

Michelle swallowed hard before stepping into the Interrogation room, her expression hardening the moment she cleared the doorway.

"Who are you?" McCarthy asked. He seemed a little more relaxed now and she wasn't sure whether or not that was a good thing. At this point all it meant was that she wasn't _quite_ as intimidating as Jack.

She ignored his question.

"You've got one chance to tell me why you were in contact with Joseph Ames and what he was doing forwarding you secure government files."

"I already told the other guy, he didn't forward me anything." He declared firmly, through gritted teeth.

"We have documents with your IP address on them and you were in possession of a laptop issued for use by the Federal government, how do you explain that?"

No answer.

She sighed heavily and tossed the papers in front of him.

"So you've never seen this before?"

"No."

Glancing towards the one-way glass she nodded at Gael.

A few minutes later Richards entered the room with a smooth metal case.

McCarthy shifted nervously in his seat, beads of sweat starting to form across his brow.

"Who's he?" he asked in a shaky voice.

She turned to Richards, ignoring McCarthy again.

"Go ahead."

Darren began to remove needles from the case and held them in plain view of McCarthy as he filled them with a greenish serum from a small vial.

"What's that?" He asked again, starting to panic.

Michelle glanced at Darren who put the vial down and started to move across the room.

"What the hell are you doing!" McCarthy shouted. "What the hell is that stuff!" he fought hard against the restraints to no avail.

"You can't do this to me!" he screamed so loudly, and Michelle felt her blood run cold. She forced the shakes from her own voice and spoke clearly.

"Last chance." She told him firmly.

"You can't do this! It's illegal! I haven't done anything wrong! You have no proof I – "

She gave the signal for Darren to proceed and his sentence was cut off with an agonizing scream. Michelle took advantage of the fact that his eyes were closed now and wiped her own sweaty palms against her skirt. A few seconds after the needle was removed McCarthy stopped screaming.

"I really don't want to do that again." She told him quietly as he struggled to remain conscious. "But if you don't tell me why Ames sent you those files we'll try this with a higher dose."

He didn't say anything, but slumped over in the seat, his breathing heavy and ragged.

"Do you know what that stuff does to you?" she asked in the same voice. "Every nerve ending in your body feels like it's on fire…and the higher the dose the longer it takes for the pain to stop. We can keep doing this all day if you want."

He spat at her from across the table and glared.

She rose, her voice cold and harsh again.

"Fine."

* * *

"Excuse me!" McCarthy's fiancé, Veronica, banged on the door of the holding room in frustration. 

"Hello!" she tried again until finally a security guard opened the door.

"What?"

"I need to use the washroom." She explained haughtily. "And I want to know where Mike is…no one's telling me anything! How can you keep us here when we haven't even been charged?"

The guard glanced at his partner who shrugged.

"Almeida said to go easy on her for now."

The first guard turned back to Veronica.

"Let's go."

Veronica leaned over the sink, staring at her reflection in the mirror. Her grey eyes were red and puffy from crying and her cheeks were flushed. She splashed some cold water over her face, glancing at the door which was slightly ajar from where the security guard was watching her.

Why weren't they telling her anything? What they hell could they possibly think Michael did?

"Hurry up in there." The guard hollered and she scowled before heading outside the bathroom.

They passed another door on the way back to Holding with another guard stationed in front of it. As the two men stopped to converse she chanced a glance in the small window and her heart stopped.

Tony heard the screams all the way from the bullpen and took off down the hallway instantly.

"What the hell happened?" he asked angrily seeing both guards trying to restrain the woman as she shrieked at the top of her lungs and pointed at the door.

"She's killing him!" she screamed through her tears. "You son of a bitch! She's killing him!" she kicked and fought off both guards who were having trouble controlling her.

"How the hell did she see that!?" he roared angrily before ordering both guards to release her. He enveloped her quickly in both arms and practically carried her to the holding room while she continued to claw and kick him violently. He tossed her inside just as she bit down hard on his arm, wincing in pain.

He exited the room long enough to tell both guards to phone in their replacements and then get out of his sight.

When he returned, Veronica was sobbing hysterically and had slumped into a corner and curled up in a ball. He watched her cry for a few seconds before pulling out the chair on one side of the table and sitting down.

She had calmed down a few minutes later.

"Is he dead?" she asked bitterly.

"No." Tony said simply. "We're just questioning him."

Veronica met his eyes angrily. "I want to know what the fuck is going on. One minute we're having lunch and the next…"

He motioned to the chair in front of him.

"Take a seat."

She remained on the floor for a second before moving cautiously to the chair.

"We have information connecting Mike to a group of terrorist sympathizers in Eastern Europe. He's been in contact with someone we've just recently identified as a threat to national security and has had access to confidential government information."

"But Mike…" she looked bewildered. "He's been working for his dad since he was a teenager…he barely knows anything about computers…it takes him an hour to write an e-mail…"

"Our Intelligence suggests otherwise." He told her calmly. "The point is he's not cooperating, and until he does we need to do whatever we have to…"

"What does that mean?"

"The sooner we can figure out exactly how he's connected to all of this, the sooner this'll be sorted out. Anything you can tell us would help…"

At that precise moment Michelle stepped into the room cautiously, Veronica snapped her head around and glared.

"Tony…he broke." She told him softly.

Tony glanced at Veronica, whose eyes were still locked on Michelle, before following her into the hall.

"What'd he say?" he asked after he'd closed the door behind them.

"Gave us the location of a man in the East End who he was forwarding the files directly to…it looks like Ames was just using him to cover his tracks."

Tony scratched the side of his face and glanced in at Veronica who was staring at her hands folded on the table.

"Does he have an address?"

"Yeah…An apartment. He's been in contact with the guy, Sam Capretta, since the beginning. Chloe's running a background check right now."

"And you think that's all he knows?" he met her eyes with a questioning glance.

She nodded. "We pushed him hard…and I can keep trying if you want…but I think more than anything he was just too scared to admit to it. At the time he didn't realize what he was getting into…"

"Alright, any idea where Jack is?"

"Still at the warehouse LAPD found earlier…he's not sure when he'll be back."

Though she did her best to conceal it, Tony caught the slightly anxious look that washed over her face.

"How's McCarthy doing?"

"Fine…" she assured him. "A little groggy, but the doctor says it'll wear off shortly. We weren't at it for long…"

Tony sighed. "Someone needs to take him to the address and see if he can make contact with Capretta…"

"I know."

"Call tactical, have them gather a unit for backup…I'll take him myself."

She swallowed hard. "No problem."

Michelle started to walk back to Interrogation and frowned when Tony didn't follow her.

"Are you coming?"

"No um…" he bit his lip. "Can you talk to McCarthy for me?"

"Sure…but - "

He inclined his head towards the door of the Holding room.

"I'm gonna talk to her."

"'Kay…" she turned on her heel and headed for Interrogation.

* * *

"How are you feeling?" Michelle asked as she stepped back inside the room. 

"Better…" he grumbled. "Do we get to go home now?"

She winced internally.

"Not yet. We need you to go with one of our tactical teams to the address you gave us and talk to the person you were sending the files to."

"Why would I do that?" he growled.

She crossed the room slowly and sat down in front of them.

"So you'll be free from prosecution…" she stated simply. "Do this…and it'll be like the whole thing never happened."

"What about Veronica?"

"She can stay here until you get back."

He considered this carefully before nodding slowly.

"When do we leave?"

* * *

"Veronica, we need to take your fiancé to an address he gave us in East LA." Tony explained easily as he sat back down across from her. 

"Why does he have to go?" she asked anxiously.

"We need to make contact with a lead he gave us."

She fidgeted nervously with her sweater.

"Is it dangerous? I mean come on…These people work with terrorists…" she trailed off nervously.

"We're taking all the necessary precautions…" he assured her softly.

"Who's going?"

He leaned back in his chair. "I am; with one of our tactical teams."

Veronica nodded slowly, tears brimming in her eyes.

"Will you…take care of him for me?" she started to cry again and then added quietly: "Please… I just…I really love him and I don't know what I'd do if anything…" her head fell into her hands as she broke down in sobs.

"It'll be fine." He reached over hesitantly and patted her shoulder.

She nodded and wiped her eyes.

"If you need anything ask the security guard to speak with Michelle Dessler."

"Is that the woman who was in there with Mike when they were…?"

Tony didn't answer.

"I don't want _her _anywhere near me." Veronica spat.

He turned back around to face her with a slightly raised eyebrow.

"If you need anything tell security."

"Alright."

* * *

Tony was emerging from Holding when he caught Michelle approaching him. 

"Tactical is assembled. McCarthy is ready for transport. Chloe set him up with a camera and a microphone that should be undetectable…"

"Thanks."

"We'll have constant communication the entire time you're out there and if there's any sort of issue the field teams will be less than 20 seconds out."

"Alright." He approached the glass doors and turned to face her finally.

"I'll uh…see you when I get back, then."

She gulped; the nerves having long since appeared in her stomach and her throat feeling dry and scratchy.

"Yeah…Good luck..."


	8. And Into the Fire

Chapter Eight - …And into the Fire

"Bauer…"

"Jack, it's Michelle. Have you found anything yet?"

Jack studied the mess around him and sighed heavily.

"So far Ames has given us the names of two contacts: Sam Capretta…"

"McCarthy gave us him as well. Tony's on his way there now."

"And Louis Leland, who's supposedly organizing everything for this attack… Ames claims he knows nothing about the target.

"Do you believe him?"

Jack glanced over at the man who was bound tightly to a chair. His face was sleek with sweat and blood and his facial hair was wild and matted, making him look even more violent. His eyes lingered nervously on Jack, as though afraid of what he might do next.

Jack tilted the phone back towards his mouth and sighed into it.

"I don't know yet."

"Alright, let me know if anything else comes up."

"Yeah, okay." Jack snapped the phone shut and slipped it into the pocket of his jeans before pushing his sleeves past his elbows and moving towards Ames again.

* * *

"So what do you want me to do?" McCarthy asked Tony who was driving the vehicle. The tactical teams were running parallel to their movements a few streets over. It was the best way to ensure Capretta didn't see them coming and panic.

"Talk to him…distract him…give us time to get our men in place so we can apprehend him."

McCarthy looked nervous. "How the hell do I manage that?"

Tony shrugged. "Figure it out. You know him, we don't."

"I don't know him that well!" he started to panic.

Tony glanced over with a raised eyebrow, but didn't say anything further.

When the car was only a block away Tony pulled over, gun in hand, and ordered McCarthy out.

"Say something." he ordered, pressing his own ear piece in after having fitted himself and McCarthy with a two-way communication package.

"What's that for?"

"Good." Tony faced him. "You'll be in constant contact with the field teams and me the entire time. Any problems and they're less than thirty seconds out… Understood?"

"Yes."

"Michelle?"

"We copy." Michelle adjusted her headset on the other end and stepped into the middle of the floor.

"Everything's set on this end."

"Go…" Tony pushed McCarthy down the sidewalk. "When we have Capretta in custody we'll take you back to your fiancé."

"You'd better…" McCarthy threatened pointlessly over his shoulder and Tony just continued to stare at him, waiting for him to walk.

Finally McCarthy started to move and Tony leaned against the side of the car, listening intently.

"We've got him on satellite…" Michelle told him. "He's making his way to the apartment complex right now. So far, so good…"

McCarthy knocked nervously on the door.

"Sam it's me…" he yelled when there was no response. "I need to talk to you…come on…"

Slowly the door was pulled back, the chain still in place. The man with dark hair and dark eyes stared back at McCarthy angrily.

"What the hell are you doing here?" he hissed under his breath. "I told you never to come here again…especially not today…"

"I wouldn't have come if it wasn't an emergency."

"Get in…" Capretta shoved open the door and dragged McCarthy inside. He indicated to the nearest wall and waited for the other man to spread his legs while he checked for weapons.

"Now what the hell is so important?" he asked a sweating McCarthy who was fidgeting with his shirt collar. "This stopped concerning you the moment you passed me those files."

"Ames promised me another $25,000 when this whole thing was over. I haven't been in contact with him since last week, and we know after today he'll disappear for good."

"That's why you're here, you little weasel?" Capretta roared. "Money? You didn't even earn the first $25,000, where the fuck do you come off asking for double…"

"Ames promised it to me. I want my money."

"You have enough money."

"So I'm supposed to let you screw me over?" McCarthy snapped; feeling emboldened.

"You have 10 seconds to turn around and walk out that door before I put a bullet in your head." Capretta had drawn a small pistol from a drawer in a hall table and was aiming it at him.

"Michelle, are you getting this?" Tony was starting to worry this whole thing would be over before they had a chance to respond.

"Yeah…we have them on Infrared."

"Is there anyone else in there?"

"It's too hard to tell…the apartments are small and some of them have conjoining doors."

"Damn it." Tony grabbed a few rounds of ammunition and stuck them in his back pocket.

"Where's tactical?"

"In 30 seconds we'll be in a position to enter the apartment, sir." The lead agent informed them.

"We don't have 30 seconds…" he slammed the car door shut and started to move down the street.

"I'm going in. This guy's gonna be dead before we get our hands on Capretta."

"Tony if you walk in there now it'll give Capretta the chance to escape…" Michelle felt her heart start to pound in her chest and snatched up the phone.

"We're not hanging him out to dry."

"Tony - "

"Tactical move in as soon as you're in position."

"Yes sir."

Michelle ran her fingers through her hair in frustration, knowing there was absolutely nothing she could do at this point, except hope everything worked out.

* * *

"Don't move!" Tony yelled as he kicked his way into the apartment in what he was convinced was three seconds before McCarthy would've been dead. Capretta froze, looking between the two before facing Tony head on.

"Don't take another step…" he warned Tony, pulling the gun to his own temple and glaring at him. "I swear to God…"

"Alright, alright…" Tony lowered his weapon slightly but kept it pointed at Capretta.

What came next happened so fast it was a miracle anyone had time to react. A swarm of men entered the apartment from all different angles and opened fire at Tony and McCarthy.

Tony dove into the next room, his hand gripping McCarthy's shirt tightly, before kicking a table on its side and diving beneath it for cover.

"What's going on?" Michelle's voice echoed loudly over the comm.

"It's an ambush! Get tactical in here now!"

Her heart didn't stop at the sound of incessant gunfire until she had shouted:

"You heard him people, move!"

"20 seconds Michelle…"

"Chloe how many people are in the apartment now?" she moved quickly to the computer.

"At least 10, not including Tony or McCarthy…"

"Damn it…" she pressed the headset more tightly into her ear in hopes of hearing something; anything.

Tony knew the barricade he'd managed to create would be hard pressed to last them until tactical neutralized the target, and they had absolutely nowhere to run. His ammunition was low and the only thing he really had to be thankful for was that he didn't have time to think about Michelle.

He was pretty sure there were at least two hostiles down, and knew for a fact one of them wasn't Capretta as he kept hearing his voice over all the commotion. Wary of wasting too many rounds and accidentally killing their lead, he avoided shooting back at all costs.

McCarthy was crouching beside him looking utterly helpless as one stray bullet after another ricocheted around the room.

"Keep your head down." He panted heavily into the other man's ear. "Tactical is on its way."

When the tactical teams burst into the room Tony shoved McCarthy further to the ground to avoid being caught in the crossfire. It was then, out of the corner of his eye, Tony caught Capretta slipping away amidst the struggle.

"You know how to shoot a gun?" Tony asked, grabbing the rifle that had been kicked in their general direction and placing it in front of McCarthy.

McCarthy went white, but nodded slowly.

"Stay here…use it if you have to."

Capretta was halfway out the open window when Tony grabbed him with both hands and threw him against a wall. Capretta had dropped his weapon but threw a hard punch, which Tony managed to dodge, before landing two of his own and pressing his gun firmly into the other man's temple.

He called for assistance and a few seconds later was joined by two agents who restrained Capretta while the firefight wound down.

"I want him riding with two sets of guards." Tony told the agent in charge.

"Sure thing, Tony."

He stepped away from the group and fiddled with his earpiece.

"Michelle?"

No answer. _Damn_. He tried tapping it lightly.

"Michelle, do you copy?"

Still no answer. He stopped one of the agents passing him, one of the newest recruits if he remembered correctly.

"Is your comm. working?"

"No sir," the young man looked apologetic. "It went out a few minutes ago."

Tony scratched the back of his neck. _Great._

It was then he finally remembered McCarthy.

He hurriedly pushed his way through the rooms and back to the spot he'd left him waiting. The site before him made him nauseous and he brought a hand to his sweaty brow and hung his head…

* * *

Michelle was still standing in the middle of the bullpen, waiting for some sort of response from either of the teams or, better yet, Tony. At this point all they'd heard on the feed was way too much shooting for her liking.

"Team A, do you copy?" she spoke into the microphone, very aware that her hands were shaking and trying to ensure no one else could tell.

"Team B?" she tried again. Still no response.

"Chloe, why isn't the comm. working?"

"It _is_ working…" Chloe retorted. "They're just not answering."

Adam shot her a death stare and Michelle took a deep breath.

"I can try a different channel…" Adam suggested.

"Tony, do you copy?" she drummed her fingers anxiously on the table, the slight panic apparent in her voice. The comm. crackled.

"Tony…" she tried a final time and the crackling sound returned.

"Yeah I copy…" he responded monotonously. "Capretta's in custody…we've got 3 casualties on our side as well as 9 hostiles."

"What about McCarthy?"

Tony sighed. "He's dead. We're on our way back to CTU now. Prep a room for interrogation."

Michelle nodded at Gael who left immediately. She picked up the cordless phone and moved a few steps away from everyone else.

"What happened?"

"I went after Capretta and a stray bullet caught him in the chest; he bled out before anyone found him." He spoke quietly now, the resentfulness apparent in his tone.

"Do you want me to tell Veronica?"

"Yeah, I guess you'd better…I don't know when we'll be back."

"Alright."

"I'll see ya in a bit." He assured her, and she felt the emotion rising as she nodded against the phone.

" 'Kay."

* * *

The guard pushed the door open for Michelle who found Veronica sitting stone-faced in a chair, refusing to meet her eyes. The guard looked as though he was about to wait, but Michelle motioned him outside and he complied.

"What do you want?" Veronica snapped, her eyes flashing dangerously.

Michelle smoothed out the blouse she was wearing and seated herself across from the other woman.

"I'm afraid I have some bad news for you."

"I told Tony I didn't want anything to do with you." She snapped. "You almost killed him..."

"I need to talk to you about your fiancé." Michelle stated quietly, leaning a little across the table.

Veronica's face went white when she finally saw Michelle's expression and her hand came to her mouth.

"Is he alright?" she muttered breathlessly and Michelle took a deep breath.

"I asked you if he was okay!" Veronica screamed, her voice becoming high and uneven.

"There was an ambush at the apartment…" she began slowly. "Our tactical teams tried to contain the hostiles but he was…caught in the crossfire…"

Veronica felt her stomach plummet and her nails dug painfully into the table.

"No…" she shook her head firmly and Michelle felt like she could relate far too easily to what this woman was feeling.

"I'm sorry…he died."

"No!" she stood so quickly her chair crashed to the floor and she backed away from the table.

"I'm sorry." Michelle repeated.

"He can't…" she brought both hands to her face and shook her head. "He can't be…" still moving backwards Veronica stumbled into the wall and fell to the floor in a heap.

Sobbing now, her whole body was convulsing. She vomited a few times and Michelle retrieved a bottle of water from the guard and handed it to her. Enraged by the gesture, Veronica sent the bottle flying back at Michelle and swore at the top of her lungs before screaming at Michelle to get out. Once back in the hall, Michelle placed a phone call to medical to have someone monitor Veronica, and told the guard to remain outside, but keep her in plain sight.

* * *

Michelle was on her way back to the bullpen when her head started to spin and instead she made a beeline for the bathroom. On the days like this, she often found herself wondering how many more years she'd have to wait before declaring herself "too old for this…"

After splashing some cold water on her face, her hands came to rest on either side of the sink and she took a deep breath; noting by her reflection how exhausted she was. The sun was already setting and they still had a long, long way to go. She couldn't allow herself to think about how badly she wanted to be curled up on the couch at home instead of here…Here where she was ruthlessly interrogating civilians, and telling people their fiancés were dead…

Goddamnit, in some ways she felt like she'd practically killed him herself. Maybe if she'd held off on the drugs a little while longer he would've had the strength to defend himself…maybe if she had been more thorough in her earlier investigations she would've found something linking Capretta then and McCarthy wouldn't have been brought into it at all…Maybe if she'd been worrying about the young, scared civilian instead of her husband the outcome would've been different…

She hung her head and wiped her face quickly.

Yeah…like she really could've managed that…

"Michelle…" one of the analysts entered the bathroom cautiously. "Sorry…but Jack's on the phone for you."

She nodded and followed the girl out the door.

"What happened?" she forgot everything she'd been worrying about the instant she stepped into the bullpen and realized something had gone horribly wrong.

"There was a bomb!" Jack exclaimed loudly amidst the chaos. "It was implanted in the hard drive we were trying to decrypt."

She swore to herself.

"What about Ames?"

"He was injured in the blast…medics are working on him now. Did Tony get Capretta?"

"They're en route to CTU now."

"Okay…" Jack turned towards the medic. "How's he doing?"

The medic shook his head and Jack screamed "Damn it!" so everyone at CTU could hear.

"Michelle, Ames is dead. I'm heading back to CTU as soon as we get cleared out of here. If we want any chance at stopping this attack we need to get Capretta talking _now_."

"Tony's starting on interrogation as soon as he gets here. Get back when you can."

"Fine."

* * *

Tony winced slightly as he climbed out of the vehicle. He had a few nasty bruises but, in retrospect, he was probably better off than most... especially considering the circumstances…

He watched as Capretta was removed from the car a few spots down and four agents, guns poised, pushed him towards the entrance. The doors beeped and slid open and they started walking down the hallway, running into Michelle halfway there.

"Jack's on his way back." She informed him, doing her best to hide how completely and utterly worried and relieved she was at the same time.

"Did you clear Interrogation 1?"

"Gael and Chloe are in there now." She followed them as they marched purposefully towards Interrogation, noting the number of scrapes all over his arms and how slowly he was moving. She forced the thoughts out of her head as they reached the room.

"Secure him." Tony called over his shoulder before pausing slightly and offering Michelle's forearm a quick squeeze, his thumb brushing across the inside of her wrist. She smiled, barely discernible to anyone but him, as he walked in behind the entourage.

* * *

"Almeida." Tony grabbed the portable phone from the corner of the bullpen and went white. It had been a few hours since Capretta had arrived at CTU.

"What?" he exclaimed, and Michelle furrowed her brow from behind her desk, the anxiety apparent in his face.

"I'll be right there."

He sprinted out of the room, calling over his shoulder that he was on his way to Holding and leaving Michelle utterly confused. After an hour of interrogation, Jack had declared they didn't have time to waste trying to break Capretta, and the President had agreed to a pardon in exchange for the location of Leland and the nature of the hit. Apparently the plan was to release weapon-grade anthrax in the District office.

Tony would be running tactical and she continued coordinating everything on his behalf when he failed to return from Holding after ten minutes. When Jack and the field teams were five minutes away Michelle knew she had no choice but to interrupt.

Her stomach dropped when she entered the room to find it filled with people, including two medics. Tony's back was to the entrance and his arms were folded across his chest as he watched everyone work on the ground before him.

On the floor, not ten feet away, Veronica was lying in a pool of blood.

Michelle approached cautiously, her hand covering her mouth in disbelief.

"What happened?" she asked quietly, unable to tear her eyes away from the bloody corpse.

"She slit her throat." He muttered softly. "She had a Swiss Army knife attached to her key chain."

The medics were busy at work, cleaning her up and preparing to wrap the body.

"Oh my god…" Michelle muttered in disbelief as Tony simply stared ahead.

"Why wasn't someone with her?" he yelled at the room, his eyes landing angrily on Michelle.

"I was, Tony." The medic explained. "I turned my back for two seconds to get a drink from the guard and it was done. We couldn't stop the bleeding."

"You should've put more security on her!" he shouted at Michelle, who quivered slightly from the close proximity.

After a few minutes of watching everyone continue to work Tony swore under his breath and exited the room.

"Where's Jack?" he asked when she caught up to him again.

"They should be in position now. Everything's set up for the advance and Chloe's providing them with Infrared feed."

"Good." He said gruffly and continued to walk.

"Tony…" she made a grab for his arm and halted their movement. He turned to face her slowly.

"You should've put more security on her." He repeated flatly and started walking again.

When Jack finally announced that the threat had been contained and Leland was in custody, all of CTU breathed a collective sigh of relief. They hadn't cut anything this close in a long time, and certainly didn't like to make a habit of it. Tony waited until the commotion had died down before retreating to his office, already on the phone with Chappelle and Hammond.

* * *

A little while later, Michelle made her way up the stairs, lacking the energy to do so at anything more than a snail's pace. With some hesitance, she pushed the door to Tony's office open.

"I finished the status report. It's on your screen."

He looked up in surprise. "You didn't have to…"

She approached the desk slowly and leaned in beside him.

"I thought you might wanna get out of here sooner than later." She told him gently and he dropped the pen he'd been fidgeting with and leaned back in his chair.

"Thanks." He reached for her hand and rubbed her arm affectionately.

"I just have to brief Division and uh…I called McCarthy's family..." he hung his head slightly and let out a deep sigh. "They're on their way to collect Veronica's body, so I should probably deal with that…Apparently she doesn't have any family."

"I can finish up everything on the floor."

He nodded silently and she noticed he was still holding her. As if realizing this for himself as well, he let go abruptly.

"I'll call you when I'm finished."

" 'Kay."

* * *

It was over three hours later when Tony finally dialed Michelle's extension.

"Logs are backed up; Chloe just finished. Gael's accounted for all the tactical teams and I debriefed Jack myself." She reeled off immediately.

"Good. Division and District are happy, and Leland's just boarded the military transport to Guantanamo. Division gave the stand-down orders, so everyone can leave as soon as their replacements have been briefed."

"What about - ?"

"They left a few minutes ago."

"Are you okay?" she lowered her voice in case anyone felt the need to listen in.

"Yeah…I just wanna get outta here."

"Me too. It shouldn't be much longer."

"I'll meet you in the car."

* * *

When they arrived home he headed straight for the stairs and immediately sat down on the mattress without making a sound. Michelle moved to the dresser and started to pull off her clothes with her back to her husband…

She went to work combing out her hair and stripped down to her underwear and a loose-fitting t-shirt before turning around towards the bed again.

At the site before her, she felt her heart break a little. Tony was still sitting on the bed, fully dressed, staring at the wall opposite him. He brought a hand to his face and scratched the side of his scruffy cheek. Veronica's suicide had been horrible, to say the least, but she knew Tony was taking it a lot more personally than anyone else. Veronica had been his charge and he felt responsible for her death. His head tilted only slightly in her direction when she crawled on the bed behind him.

"Tough day…" she said quietly.

"Yeah…" Tony sighed. "I told her he'd be okay…"

Michelle's fingers gently undid a few buttons of his shirt. Her hands slowly ran across his chest, making Tony sigh again and lean into her touch.

"You did everything you could, Tony…"

Her arms squeezed more securely around him. Michelle's own emotions were getting the best of her and she fought back the tears that threatened to spill over her lids; the events of the day replaying in her mind. It hadn't been Michael McCarthy she'd been worried about.

"Getting Capretta was a priority…" she attempted to keep her voice steady. "And you couldn't jeopardize that."

"I know. You're right." His chin came to rest against his chest as she continued to rub his shoulders beneath his shirt.

"And if you could've done more you…" she trailed off, unable to finish the sentence and struggled to contain a whimper that had risen in her throat.

"I'm okay…" he assured her, having heard the change in her voice and linking their fingers together tenderly.

"No I know…" she sniffled a little and smiled, her free hand running through his hair. "I know you are, sweetheart…and I know you would've done whatever you had to…and…" she swallowed hard, completely aware of how far Tony would've gone to save McCarthy. "And…I love you so much…"

Tony finally twisted around and his free arm found her quivering form, pulling it into his lap. She hugged him forcefully, making up for all the times she'd wanted to during the day and had to keep reminding herself there was still work to be done, and a lot of people were still looking to her to help lead them through this crisis.

His fingers ran through her hair, carefully twirling a few loose strands around themselves.

"You tired?" he asked the crook of her neck.

Michelle shook her head against him. _Just scared..._ The events of the day had hit too close to home. He rubbed her back quickly a few times before patting the side of her leg splayed over the bed in a position that looked entirely uncomfortable.

"C'mon...tomorrow's gonna be hell again..."

Michelle nodded and got to her feet to pull back the blankets. Incidentally she felt much better once they'd settled underneath them, with his hand resting lightly over her stomach. Michelle bit back the remnants of a few more tears before drifting off into an uneasy sleep.

It took Tony a long time to fall asleep that night. He kept reliving everything that had happened and hating himself for running after Capretta and leaving McCarthy. The rational part of his brain, (which, incidentally, sounded a lot like Michelle), told him that he had had no other option. McCarthy's life for the lives of everyone at the District office wasn't an option. The other part of him, the caring, empathetic part, made him feel like he was scum.

Michelle twisted against him and he knew she was dreaming. Usually, she barely moved once she had fallen asleep. He pulled her closer and breathed in the scent of her hair. God…now that he thought about it, he realized how close he had been…It wasn't about him dying, it was about leaving her; losing her.

He gently leaned over and pressed a kiss in her hair, squeezing her more tightly for a brief second and reveling in the comfort her body heat provided. His thoughts remained where they had been before, but his head had stopped spinning so much and he started to relax ever-so slightly as her breath warmed the crook of his neck.

Thank God it was over.


	9. Therapy

Chapter Nine – Therapy

It had been three days since Tony had gone into the field with Michael McCarthy.

3 days, 10 hours and 14 minutes.

Once Tony had gotten past the initial shock that day, and was given a few hours of much needed rest to process it, he seemed to gradually morph back into himself. At CTU there was much still to be done regarding blowback from both the threat to District, and the ensuing tragedy, and in the last two nights Michelle had managed all of five hours sleep total. In fact, Tony and Jack informed her of their intention to work straight through the third night to finish consolidating all the data for the other agencies just to get it done.

"Go_ home_…"Tony ordered her when he explained.

"I can help…" she insisted. "And then we can _all_ get some sleep."

Truth be told, on any other night after so little sleep she'd be too tired to resist, but ever since he'd gone with McCarthy, Michelle couldn't help but feel a little hesitant at being apart for a long time. She'd rather be with him, regardless.

He relented, apparently too tired to argue, and the three crowded into Jack's office, (which seemed a lot cozier at 2am than the Conference room) and stared at packet after packet of paper and scrolled through page after page on the computer in an attempt to compile something relatively acceptable.

By 6:30 all three pairs of eyes were blurry, but the work was done.

"When are you guys back on?" Jack asked gruffly as he snapped the laptop shut.

"Eight…" Tony groaned, noticing the time. "Just enough time to prep for the Conference call. What about you?"

"Same…" Jack yawned and smirked at little at Michelle who was fighting to keep her eyes open.

"You look like hell." Tony teased him, needing to lighten the mood somehow.

Jack smirked a little.

"I'm going to sleep in here." He told them. "No point wasting an hour in drive time."

"That's actually not a bad idea…" Tony poked his wife in the arm.

"I'm game…" she sighed, and started to stand.

"If I don't hear from you by 8:30 I'm kicking the door down." Jack warned. "I'm not in the mood to deal with Chappelle alone."

"Yeah…yeah…" Tony grumbled as he followed Michelle out the door.

"So what do ya think?" she asked, surveying the room as Tony loosened the collar of his shirt.

"I think I've fallen asleep in that chair enough times to know I'd rather sleep on the floor than do it again…"

She smiled and kicked off her heels.

"We can squish on the couch…" he decided. "We've done it before."

"Our couch is way bigger than this one." She frowned and studied it.

"Sick of me so soon?" he joked, making her smile.

"There's nothing to use as a blanket either…"

"I'll keep you warm, sweetheart." He told her affectionately and slipped an arm around her waist.

She cocked her head to one side, her eyes laughing a little.

"It's a good thing those doors lock."

"Yeah…we'd just better make sure we're up by 8:30 or we'll have company…I wouldn't put it past Jack to break down the damn thing…"

"I'm setting both alarms on our phones…" she stated as she did so, while unbuttoning her shirt a little. Tony slumped, sitting onto the couch and waited impatiently. She finally joined him after what seemed like forever, and let out a huge sigh of relief as his arm rested around her and their legs entwined.

"It's a good thing you didn't listen to me..." He mumbled out of sheer exhaustion a few seconds later.

"This wouldn't be nearly as fun by myself."

Michelle laughed tiredly and kissed his neck, before resting her cheek against him.

"No kidding."

The alarms blasted a few minutes apart from one another and Tony groaned heavily before leaping to shut them off, forgetting Michelle was almost entirely on top of him and landing her on the floor.

"Sorry…" he grumbled, stumbling back to the couch and collapsing against it. He could've sworn it hadn't been an hour and a half yet.

"Thanks." She groaned and pulled herself off the floor before dragging him to his feet.

Tony started to change his clothes, being lucky enough to have a set in the office, as Michelle searched for some sort of makeup in her bag and headed for the locker room.

At 8:27 Michelle was last into the Conference room, Jack and Tony already waiting, still trying to wake up.

"Here…" Tony pushed a mug of coffee in her direction and she was so happy she could've kissed him.

"Thanks, honey." She said without thinking, but neither batted an eyelash at the endearment.

She took a huge gulp, scalding her tongue, just as they were informed that Chappelle was on the line.

"Ryan, it's Tony, you're also on with Jack and Michelle."

"First of all, District Director Vaughan has asked me to express his gratitude for the results this office has been producing this week; both in containing the threat and finishing all the paperwork so efficiently."

"Thanks…" Tony drawled semi-sarcastically, and Michelle smiled a little at him from across the table.

"As far as I can tell, everything looks satisfactory. So unless any more problems or complications arrive you can start coordinating some down time for the staff…"

Everyone's face lit up, a moment too soon though.

"Bearing in mind that two days from now I need someone at Division for the day to help overhaul the entire network. There was substantial data packet lost that caused serious time lags and we need to ensure this won't be a problem again."

"Fine Ryan… We'll send Chloe O'Brian."

"I don't want O'Brian. You may think she's brilliant, but she's no good to me when it comes to managerial work."

Tony sighed heavily. The only person who knew the networks as well as Chloe was…

"Michelle?"

Michelle hung her head a little in defeat.

"Sure Ryan. I'll be there first thing Friday morning."

Tony groaned quietly in exasperation.

"If that's the case, Michelle and I want Saturday off…"

"Don't push it, Almeida."

"It'll have been over a week for both of us by then. We want Saturday off together."

Ryan hesitated before conceding. "Fine."

Tony nudged Michelle's foot under the table and she beamed.

"Jack…any new leads from the information obtained in the field?"

"No… Right now I'm in the middle of the case files for Capretta, Ames and McCarthy, but so far there are no new connections. I'll keep you posted."

"Alright, then we're done here."

The line went dead and Tony turned off the phone, scratching the side of his face and following Jack and Michelle out the room.

* * *

Michelle hated going to Division for two reasons. 1) There was a very real possibility that she might run into Carrie Turner - one of the few people who found a way to truly get under her skin – and 2) it was boring. Ryan ran things completely differently from Tony or Jack and everything, _everything, _was about efficiency and protocol, no matter how slow a day they were having. No one talked to anyone else unless they were on break and well out of sight of Mr. Chappelle. This particular occasion seemed worse than all of the other ones because, rational or not, the thought of being away from her husband for an entire day left Michelle feeling uneasy. She knew it was illogical, but this was the closest she'd ever watched him come to being seriously injured, or worse, and anything that had him out of her sight for more than a few hours didn't sit well. They'd pretty much been with each other entirely for the past three days. But, when Ryan asked for something Ryan usually got what he wanted, and unfortunately for Michelle, he seemed to prefer her out of everyone at CTU. Meaning, she didn't have a choice in the matter.

"Almeida."

It was just before noon and Michelle had been going non-stop all morning. She smiled tiredly at the sound of his voice, anxious for the day to be over so they could finally get some decent rest.

"Hey, it's me."

"Hey, what's goin' on?"

"We're about a third of the way through everything…it's taking longer than I thought."

He groaned. "Great…what time do you think you'll be home?"

"I'm guessing eight or nine. Sorry…"

"Don't be." He shrugged it off. "Just another thing Chappelle can make up to us."

She laughed softly.

"How are things going over there?"

He sighed. "Slow…I'll just be glad when today's over."

"Yeah, no kidding..."

"Ah…damn. Honey, Gael needs me on the floor. I'll call ya in a little while, alright?"

"Let me know if anything changes."

"I will."

She hung up the phone, slightly queasy. The idea that something big could be happening at CTU and she wouldn't be there definitely left Michelle feeling unsettled. Taking a large mouthful of water and turning back to her monitor she forced the thoughts out of her head.

He called her at five to say he was leaving. In fact ever since lunch he'd been calling every hour or so, with nothing much to say except that it was the slowest day in the history of CTU and he missed her. By the third call she was starting to wonder if it really was as slow there as he claimed it was, or whether she had sounded off before and he was calling to reassure her. He must know she was at least somewhat anxious over what had happened with him just a few days before, (particularly because if the situation had been reversed he'd be going out of his mind).

* * *

It was 8:00 and she was exhausted. Michelle highly doubted she could've handled one more day without collapsing in the middle of the bullpen from sleep deprivation.

"Tony…" she called as she pushed open the front door and listened patiently for his response. No answer.

"Tony!" she tried again, wondering if she'd imagined his car in the driveway in her desire to get inside. She'd spoken to him barely two hours ago, but it felt like an eternity.

"Ton – !" he appeared at the top of the stairs and her voice tapered off.

"Hey," she smiled, not even bothering trying to mask her relief.

"Hey," he appeared disinterested. "Anything new at Division?"

"No. Upgrades are done…thankfully."

He nodded and started to descend and then move into the kitchen, with her a few paces behind.

"You wanna go out for dinner?" he asked, after a quick glance at the clock, and then grumbled as he swung open the cupboards: "There's no food in this damn house…and I don't feel like takeout."

She nodded. "Yeah, sounds good. Just let me change…"

"Alright…where do you wanna go?" he spun around to face her.

Michelle shrugged. "Doesn't matter…"

He rolled his eyes sarcastically. "Y'know one of these days you _will_ have to pick where we eat…"

She laughed.

He paced aimlessly into the living room to wait, and raised an eyebrow when Michelle followed him and leaned against the doorframe, arms folded across her chest.

"You okay?"

She nodded a little before crossing the room and wrapping her arms snugly around his neck while kissing him slowly with a probing tongue. Caught a little off guard by this, Tony took a minute to gather his composure before reciprocating fully and lifting her ever-so slightly off the ground.

"What was that for?" he asked after a couple of nice, long minutes. The kiss was broken but he was still holding onto her as tightly as he had been before, and their foreheads were resting together.

Michelle shook her head casually. "Nothing. Just felt like it…"

He chuckled softly before slapping her lightly.

"Go change…"

She grinned and kissed him once more firmly before departing.

* * *

He noted that she looked particularly pretty that evening as they walked into the restaurant they'd agreed upon. Her hair was loose and she wore nothing but a white tank top, zip up sweater, and dark jeans. The bags under her eyes were even more apparent now and he felt guilty for dragging her out to a restaurant, (despite the fact that she'd agreed willingly), especially when they were told it would be at least a forty-five minute wait.

He frowned in chagrin when she reminded him it was quarter to nine on a Friday night.

"We'll just wait…" she told him quietly, leaning in slightly and touching his arm. "Everywhere else is gonna be the same."

He watched her fight to stay awake as they settled down on a bench in the corner of the restaurant, and slipped an arm around her shoulders. She smiled a little, tilted her head against him, and sighed contentedly as his fingers caressed the back of her neck and toyed with her hair.

"Rough week…" he commented tiredly, trailing his hand down her arm. She nodded, leaning into him further and feeling the best she'd felt since that day.

Just as the feeling of contentment Michelle was experiencing seemed to have peaked, Brad Hammond pushed through the front door, a gust of cool air coming with him, and bursting their serene little bubble. She shivered and Tony kept an eye on him while he walked up to the hostess' stand, hoping to remain unnoticed.

Unfortunately for everyone involved, that didn't happen.

Hammond saw them and looked as though he was debating whether or not to say something. He watched uncomfortably for a few seconds, before realizing they'd all seen each other and trudging forward to where they were. Michelle made to sit up, but felt Tony's grip tighten slightly.

"Tony…Michelle…" he inclined his head curtly.

"Hey Brad…" Tony leaned back against the bench casually as Michelle mumbled something similar.

"Waiting for a table?" he asked awkwardly.

_No, we just like the view from here…_Tony had to fight an eye roll.

"Yeah…" he responded simply, and they continued to look between each other waiting for someone to speak.

"Are you meeting someone?" Michelle asked.

He nodded. "My wife…There was a late meeting at District."

After a few seconds of standing there, looking uncomfortable, Hammond spoke to Michelle.

"Ryan Chappelle told me that you were in charge of the upgrades at Division today."

"Yes. We finished about two hours ago."

"Good. Ryan places a lot of confidence in your abilities Michelle…with good reason."

Her jaw hung open in slight disbelief. Was that a compliment? Or well, as backhanded of a compliment as you get from Hammond…especially when you're married to Tony Almeida. She watched his eyes linger on Tony's arm, which was still around her, ever-so subtly caressing her skin.

"Thank you." Tony was frowning and she averted his gaze.

"It'd be a shame for your talents to go to waste because of _unfortunate _circumstances..."

At that moment the hostess returned and ended the conversation. Hammond nodded slightly to each of them and let without another word.

Ten minutes later they were sitting at their own table, the encounter with Hammond still fresh in their minds.

"What wrong?" Michelle raised her eyebrows, taking a sip of her drink. They hadn't spoken since they'd been seated.

Tony shrugged. "Nothing…"

"You've been acting strange since…"

"Yeah well…since when has seeing Hammond ever put me in a good mood?" He scowled and turned back to his menu.

She wasn't buying it; the exasperated expression on her face told him so.

"You know what he was doing, don't you?" he spat out suddenly.

"What?"

"That whole act…he's trying to convince you that you'd have more opportunities elsewhere and that I'm holding you back."

She looked skeptical, although inwardly she knew he had a point.

"Trust me, Michelle…I know this guy. He's always got some sort of motive and so long as we're married you're not gonna get the same chances you would get otherwise. It's his way of trying to - "

"Break us up?" she stared at him incredulously.

"He hates the idea that we're married, and let's face it…you'd have plenty of chances to move up if that weren't the case."

She stared at him in disbelief.

"I did…"

"What?"

"Right before we got engaged…I got a job offer from District."

"You didn't tell me that."

She shrugged. "I didn't have to."

"Of course you didn't have to, but if you were thinking about leaving - "

"No…I mean." She met his eyes. "I wasn't thinking about it. I turned it down over the phone."

"Why?"

Again, she shrugged. "After I came to CTU I realized how miserable it was at District…why would I want to go back to that for a little extra money?"

After a few seconds of silence he reached out and rubbed her hand.

"Sorry."

"For what?"

"For biting your head off…It just bugs me that he's so…"

"Honey, I know." She assured him sympathetically. "But that's never gonna change so we just…can't let him get to us. Even when I first transferred to CTU I was so much happier there…believe me. I can't imagine wanting to be anywhere else."

He searched her face for reassurance which she gave easily.

"And if you did…"

"And if I did not even Brad Hammond could stop me…" she told him wryly. "And if I did I know you wouldn't care…" her expression softened.

"No…" he assured her. Of course he wouldn't care. Her wanting to do well in her career had absolutely nothing to do with her feelings for him. If she ever had the opportunity to leave CTU, he would expect her to take it if that's what she wanted.

"I'd just miss you."

She smiled softly and her fingers started to trace his palm, the conversation turning to more lighthearted matters after that.

* * *

The next morning the sun woke Michelle up and she groaned, wishing she could sleep late like she had in college, and wondering if you became more sensitive to light with age. She'd barely had time to process the thought when she was being kissed warmly on the mouth.

"Hey…" she beamed and rubbed his cheek when the kiss broke. Tony didn't say anything, and instead maneuvered her beneath him before kissing her more deeply. His fingers slipped beneath her shirt, trailing across her cool stomach and applying gentle pressure. A soft noise came from her throat and he moved his lips to the spot as her nails raked gently across his back…

A while later, they were still trying to force themselves to get out of bed…it was just so nice to be able to loaf around. She felt like a cat, lying on the stretch of mattress being warmed by the sun and feeling completely relaxed for the first time all week. His weight shifted behind her and his body sealed snugly around hers as his hand crossed her, lifted her own hand slightly and began tracing patterns lazily against the sheet. She watched in interest for a few minutes before linking their fingers together and pulling his arm around her more tightly. He smiled as he kissed her bare shoulder and she did too.

"We have to go shopping…" she reminded him apologetically and he groaned a little in exasperation.

"We don't really need to eat that badly, do we?"

She gave a soft laugh.

"Unfortunately yes…"

"_Alright…_" he rolled away from her and climbed out of bed. If he _had_ to go shopping, there really was no one better to have to go shopping with.

Michelle knew she was grinning like an idiot when he grabbed her hand and pulled her to her feet, but she didn't care. Days like this, where she took the time to appreciate every intricate detail of their life, only came around once in a blue moon and she'd be damned if she wasn't going to soak up every last second of it.


	10. Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder

**A/N: **_Hey guys, thanks so much to everyone who reviewed the last chapter. Sometimes I really need the motivation…so please keep them coming : )! I'm in exams right now, so no guarantees on when the next chapter will be up…I'm apologizing in advance…As far as this chapter is concerned, I'm really hoping it's better than I think it is…:S. _

Chapter Ten – Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder

The days at CTU in the month following Ames and the failed attempt on District proved steady. There was much work to be done following up on a series of cases and Jack was petitioning to Chappelle to organize an undercover operation with the Salazars, two brothers running a drug cartel out of Mexico with significant terrorist connections. It was an argument they'd been having for months: Jack believed it was only a matter of time before they came up with something big and Ryan didn't want to waste resources until they had something substantial.

In light of new Intel that they stumbled across one afternoon, it became apparent that Jack's hunch had been right on the money and they, most definitely, had terrorist involvement. Ryan authorized Jack to start pulling together info on the pair in preparation for some sort of action to be taken.

Tony had never questioned whether or not Jack's opinion of the Salazars would prove correct; it was something he'd learned not to do after years of working together. He did however, concern himself a little with the kinds of strains an undercover operation in the months to come might put on his life at home – namely one that involved taking away their Head of Field Ops for extended periods of time.

The notion crept up on him late one night when he and Michelle were sitting peacefully in front of the TV. Initially, she'd flipped on some sitcom, neither of them wanting to watch the news. However, it hadn't been long before she'd dozed off, her feet in his lap and her head resting awkwardly on the armrest of the couch. In the midst sliding a pillow beneath her head, he weaseled away the remote and flipped on a basketball game.

His mind didn't stay there though. It wandered to what the implications of Jack going undercover in Mexico might have on his life; on nights like this. It was selfish, undoubtedly, and it was the first time it occurred to him the kind of affect the marriage had had on him professionally. His priorities had shifted and his first concern was no longer, by a long shot, the job. It was them.

"Hey…" Michelle exclaimed and shifted her position, her eyes still shut. "I was watching that…"

He laughed a little and patted her leg.

"No you weren't…" he brushed her off and received no more protests. She'd fallen back asleep.

* * *

"Hey Michelle…" Adam's voice buzzed over her speaker and she scooped up the receiver.

"What's up?"

"Mr. Chappelle is on the phone for you."

She frowned a little.

"Thanks, put him through." She heard the phone click as the call was transferred.

"Ryan…"

"Hey Michelle…I need to schedule a meeting with you for this afternoon."

Her brow crinkled and she couldn't contain he surprise.

"With me?"

"That's what I said…I'll be at CTU around 3."

"Um…yeah, fine. Can I ask what this is about?" she glanced up at Tony's office, where he was sitting at the computer, the phone resting in the juncture between his neck and shoulder.

"I'd rather not say. I'll see you at 3."

"Alright…"

"Oh and Michelle…" she heard the slightest amount of hesitation in his voice. "I'd like to keep this just between us. I'll meet you in the old IT room on the third floor."

Her eyes returned back to Tony's office, even more confused now.

"Sure, Ryan."

The phone clicked, leaving Michelle utterly perplexed at what had just happened.

* * *

"Michelle." Ryan rose from his chair situated at a makeshift table he'd arranged in the practically empty room. "Have a seat."

She did, though somewhat nervously. Ryan rarely requested private meetings with anyone, and when he did it was either Tony or Jack. She couldn't figure out what he wanted to talk to her about that they were being kept out of the loop on. It was obvious he was going out of his way to make sure no one knew.

"I've just been in contact with David Kelly, he's head of CTU Washington and they're a little bit short on manpower right now."

Michelle listened wordlessly as Ryan outlined some of the issues the DC office was facing. Subconsciously, she crossed and uncrossed her legs several times as she began to realize where the conversation was heading.

"I want you in DC." He finished simply. There was definitely no beating around the bush when it came to dealing with Ryan Chappelle.

She felt her throat constrict and her heart rate increase slightly.

"For how long?"

"Couple of weeks…maybe a month…however long it takes for them to sort through everything. Division asked me to select someone from this office because it's been producing such good results in the past few years."

"I see…"

"I'm not selling a used car here, Michelle… I don't think I need to tell you how rare of an opportunity it is and how valuable it would be to your career."

She said nothing and it was obvious to him she was thinking it over carefully.

"I won't order you to go." He told her directly. "Because I don't think I have to." She met his gaze and tried her best to keep her face neutral.

"What about my responsibilities here-"

"Tony'll manage." He interrupted. "You're getting a choice, so choose carefully. No else knows about this yet and we can keep it that way until you make your decision."

"Ryan I'm not sure…" she hesitated. "When do you need a decision?"

"Soon. So think about it. Talk to…" he cleared is throat. "Talk to Tony if you want… But let me know."

Ryan left the file sitting in front of her and made excuses about having to get back to Division, leaving Michelle alone with her thoughts.

* * *

"Hey…" Tony leaned back in his chair and kinked his jaw to one side as Michelle entered the office. "Where'd you go?"

"I uh…" she fidgeted uncomfortably. "I had to go check on some things."

He raised an eyebrow, obviously skeptical of her vague excuse, before dragging himself out of the chair so he was leaning against the desk a few feet in front of her.

She bit her lip as he tilted his head, searching her face carefully.

"What's up?"

She cursed herself for having such a pathetic poker face.

"I was talking to Ryan." She told him, taking a few steps towards the desk.

"About what?" he furrowed his brow.

"He uh…" she pursed her lips together. "He wants me to go to Washington to help the DC office…they're short on manpower and Division wants to send someone from here and obviously we can't lose you or Jack for that long…I'm the next logical choice."

"How long?" he asked, the last comment sending a small wave of panic throughout him as he waited for her response.

"Ryan said…" she took a deep breath. "A few weeks to a month…"

He sighed heavily, scratching the back of his neck.

"Who else knows about this?"

"No one. He said he wouldn't say anything until I made my decision."

"Michelle…"

"If you don't want me to go because you need the manpower…" she began simply, leaning in close and resting her hand on the desk.

"I won't. But if you don't want me to go because…"

She trailed off, but he knew how that sentence was supposed to end. _If you don't want me to go because you'll miss me…or you'll worry about me…_

"Damn it, Michelle. I dunno…"

She stared at him, her expression softening when he met her eyes.

"You already made your decision." He finally concluded after studying her face for a few seconds.

"No I -"

"Yeah, ya did." He cut her off. "You know you want to go."

"It's just that I would get -"

"And you don't have to justify it…you have every right to want to go."

She hesitated and he pulled her hand off the desk, knowing what he had to say but not wanting to say it. He had no reason to keep her there and despite what she said, he knew he could give a completely lame one and she would stay if he asked her to. He just didn't like the idea of her running around doing god only knew what with him 3,000 miles away.

"You want to do it…so do it." He tugged her in briefly and planted a quick kiss on her forehead.

"I gotta get these files to Gael."

She watched him descend down the stairs and took a few minutes to process what had just happened before heading back to her station.

* * *

She ended up leaving on a Thursday evening flight out of LAX, giving her the weekend to become acquainted with CTU Washington. While Tony never made Michelle feel guilty for leaving, it was quite obvious he didn't want her to. He would never say it because he knew if he did she wouldn't go, and he didn't want that either.

"Alright so uh…" he started awkwardly as he pulled her aside at the gangway, thanking his CTU badge for allowing him to pass through security. Her bags had been dropped off, hotel accommodations arranged by Division, and the briefing packets on CTU DC were already stowed safely in her carryon.

He scratched the back of his neck uncomfortably and moved her away from the ticket agent, who had just begun calling the flight.

"Call me…" he finished and she smiled almost unnoticeably.

"I will…"

"And uh….be careful, alright?"

"Yeah…" she sighed a little when he cupped her face tenderly with one hand, his fingers brushing back her hair.

The final rows of the flight were being called and she mumbled something about having to go.

She scooped up her bag and placed a quick, but firm kiss against his lips running her fingers delicately up one arm.

"I love you." She whispered sweetly, turning on her heel and heading towards the plane before he had time to respond.

* * *

The hotel was nice. Her room contained a king-sized bed and a view of a small park a few blocks away. She promised herself she'd make a point of going running the following day and take a look around the area. As she unpacked, she considered how nice being away from everything and everyone might actually be. Alone time was hard to come by and she figured she may as well take advantage of it.

She was a little uneasy walking into CTU on Monday morning. She'd spent the weekend go over the files Chappelle had sent her, and making brief contact with David Kelly. Kelly, a former naval officer, had a reputation for being fair but a little too by the book and a slightly more lax than one would expect of a CTU Director. It was possibly why the office was having the problems they were having now. Both their second-in-command and Head of Field Ops had been killed in a field operation gone awry and Kelly was still struggling to repair the damage. (She wondered if Tony had known as much before she left).

"Can I help you?" A young woman on the floor asked as security escorted her into the bullpen. The office was significantly smaller than what she was used to, with only one level and both the Holding and Interrogation rooms contained on the floor below.

"I'm looking for David Kelly."

"Ms. Dessler?"

Michelle nodded.

"He's expecting you in the Conference room…"

When she returned to the hotel that night she was completely drained; even more so than after a regular day of work. Kelly had been welcoming and appreciative of any help she had to offer, but a few of the analysts seemed reluctant – having been close with the man who'd held her job before.

_This isn't your job…_she'd reminded herself as many times as she had them. _You'll be back home before you know it…_

While the hotel may have been comfortable enough, and no doubt served its purpose, it didn't offer the same kind of detachment from the day that her own house and bed did. And from what Kelly had told her, things were only going to get more stressful as she learned the ropes. The Intel they were processing indicated some sort of large scale attacks in the Washington area in the next few weeks…and judging from what she had seen today there was a long way to go before they'd be prepared to handle something of that magnitude.

Her phone rang just after eleven and she breathed a sigh of relief.

"Hey," she smiled tiredly into the receiver.

Tony frowned. "Hey…did I wake you?"

"No…I was just getting ready for bed now…" she steadied the phone beneath her chin and began pulling on her pajama pants.

"Are you just getting home now?"

"Yeah…Jack had some stuff he wanted to go over…"

She smiled at the gruffness in his voice and how it so happened that that tone, more than anything, had come to soothe her.

"So how'd it go?" he asked as she unclipped her bra with her free hand and wiggled out of her blouse.

"There's a long way to go." She admitted. "Kelly isn't…on top of things exactly."

"Well…c'mon Michelle, you can't expect everyone to be as great as I am."

She laughed at the cockiness and he grinned.

"It's good you haven't let it go to your head."

He chuckled softly and they both reveled in the comfort of the silence for a few moments.

"You sound dead…"

She leaned back against the pillows grimly.

"Long day…"

"Long couple of days…" he grumbled a little.

"Tony…"

"I know, I know…" he sighed. "So, did you go running?"

"Yeah, this morning…"

"How was it?"

"Freezing."

"I think you've been spoiled living in LA for so long." He teased.

"I like the winter!"

"It's March, Michelle."

"And by definition, I'm pretty sure that means it's still winter."

"Yeah well…you just wait until I take you back to Chicago…then you'll see winter."

She rolled her eyes. "Is that around the same time I'll be witnessing a Cubs' loss on home turf?"

"Don't be silly, sweetheart." He scoffed. "The Cubs don't play in the winter."

When her snickers died down he heard her yawn.

"I should let you get some sleep."

She agreed reluctantly, wondering if he was in the middle of dinner. Whatever he'd made had to be better than that sandwich she'd grabbed on the way home.

"I'll call you tomorrow, 'kay?" she told him sleepily.

He smiled.

"Okay. Night."

"Night…" she yawned again and was gone.

* * *

During her second week in Washington, Michelle received a late night call from Kelly, interrupting the first few hours of decent sleep she'd managed to acquire since arriving.

"Michelle a situation has arisen. How soon can you get here?"

She muffled a groan and rolled over to check the alarm clock. Her head was pounding and she was trying to remember where she'd packed the Tylenol.

"Twenty minutes." She admitted dully. The problem with having a hotel in the heart of the city meant there wasn't much of an excuse in the way of drive time. She reluctantly pulled herself out of bed and headed for the bathroom…

* * *

Tony was just starting to contemplate sleep himself when his own phone rang. It was Chappelle.

"What's up Ryan?"

"We have a situation and we need as many hands-on-deck as possible processing Intel."

"Where?" he reeled off robotically and felt his stomach tighten when he didn't receive the usual, snippy answer.

"Ryan?" he checked to make sure the phone hadn't gone dead.

"Washington." Chappelle finished flatly and heard Tony curse vehemently on his end of the phone. Tony had practically leapt off the couch and started scrambling for his things.

"Did you call Jack yet?"

"This isn't a field operation."

"We could still use his help…"

"Almeida…" Ryan warned, but was ignored.

"There might be leads we can workup on our end."

"Almeida…" Ryan repeated, a little more firmly this time.

"Do we know if they're -?"

"Tony!" Ryan bellowed, finally catching his attention. "You don't even know what the situation is yet! Now are you gonna be able to keep your head in the game or not?"

Tony scowled. "My head's in the game. Don't worry."

"Good. I'll see you at CTU."

* * *

"Half an hour ago weapons-grade anthrax was released in a stadium 5 miles north of there. This was done just as a concert was being concluded. NHS is working on quarantining it and the surrounding regions as we speak. Langley and DOD are compiling lists of potential suspects and are coordinating with our other agencies. We need to get processing Intel immediately, as well as dispatch a field team to help with containment and crowd control."

"Why are we responsible for crowd control?" Michelle frowned, leaning back in her chair and studying the faces around the room.

"Police and SWAT members aren't trained to handle this type of a scenario. They have limited experience at best dealing with biological warfare and while we will be provided with backup, we've been instructed not to leave matters of this magnitude to people who are unfamiliar with it. It's too risky."

"So what do you want us on?" Lou Samson, the newest acquisition as Head of Field Ops piped up.

"We'll send a team – Lou, whoever you want, but take Michelle with you."

Lou raised an eyebrow. "That seems unnecessary."

"She's has more experience. Any questions?"

No one said a word and Michelle felt the butterflies forming in her stomach as she rose from her chair and made her way to the locker room to change into something more appropriate.

* * *

Anthrax. Goddamnit. His throat had constricted the instant he heard Chappelle say the words. But Michelle wasn't a field agent... They had no reason to put her anywhere but CTU.

That was a complete lie. They had every reason to send her into the field. She was experienced, something the entire office was lacking in, and in a crisis situation that definitely took precedent over who was supposed to be doing what job.

He should call her. He should call her and see what was going on – where she was.

_No…_he berated himself internally. She was fine. She'd call him when she had a chance.

* * *

Michelle was sweating profusely within her hazmat suit, taking what was barely a minute to catch her breath as she watched NHS, as well as her own team, work. They'd been inside the stadium for the past four hours, cleanup of the airborne spores was almost complete, but they were still treating the hundreds that had been exposed. It had been four hours of people screaming at her for treatment while she tried her best to coordinate with Lou, (who wasn't exactly being cooperative), and keep everyone calm. Finally, as the doctors made their way through the crowds, everyone had started to relax.

Two hours later she was informed there had been one casualty, an elderly woman. She had one thing to be grateful for: the fact that this news came only after everyone else had been treated, so as not to elicit more panic. Everyone involved had responded with remarkable speed and had they not the situation could've ended a lot worse.

"Dessler."

"Michelle, it's Dave. We want you to start preparing to move your people out and get them back to CTU. We need you here to start dealing with the intelligence backlash."

She sighed in exasperation. They really weren't kidding about the amount of work there would be. And while long hours weren't something she couldn't handle, it felt half the time like she was the only one doing anything. Kelly didn't exactly run a tight ship and she was always picking up the slack.

She wanted to go home.

* * *

Two weeks later she was still in DC. Two miserable weeks later. She debated everyday whether or not she could call Chappelle and tell him it wasn't working out; tell him she couldn't take it any longer and she wanted to go back to her old job where she wasn't acting like the Director of CTU, along with all of her other responsibilities. It was too much – even for her.

"Tony…" Jack pushed inside the office just as Tony was zipping up his briefcase, laptop and all, and preparing to leave.

His shoulders hunched as he turned around to face the door.

"What's up Jack?"

"Did you look over the Salazar file?"

"Yeah um…" Tony hesitated. "I was hoping we could go over that on Monday."

Jack looked a little surprised but nodded, "yeah, sure."

Tony nodded in response and waited anxiously for him to leave.

"You going somewhere?" Jack pressed, noting the overnight bag that was already packed.

"Yeah…" Tony clawed at his crinkled brow. "I'm heading to DC for the weekend."

"How's Michelle doing, anyway?"

"Fine…it's only been a month but…" his voice trailed off.

Jack smiled slightly.

"Have a good weekend, Tony."

"Thanks…"

* * *

When Tony arrived at the DC office and informed security who he was and was met with some resistance...

"One of my employees has been with you guys for a month." He insisted, unable to mask his frustration.

"I'm sorry Mr. Almeida but we weren't expecting you today and no one seems to be aware of your visit."

Tony scowled.

"Can you just call David Kelly and let him know I'm here." The guard winced at his expression. It definitely wasn't a request.

He was extremely relieved when he was finally escorted inside and placed in the situation room. 

"Hey Tony," Dave walked in and offered a hand. "To what do we owe this pleasure?"

David Kelly was tall, much taller than Tony, and his brown hair was already substantially flecked with grey.

"Yeah uh…look Dave, I'll level with you. I'm here for Michelle."

Kelly smiled. "I figured as much. She just got back from the field." He explained vaguely, and Tony tensed at this. "Once she's done debriefing I'll send her up."

Tony thanked him as he left the room, stating he had other matters to attend to.

Occasionally one of the staff members would appear to offer him coffee or see if he needed computer access for anything. It was three bitter cups and a little over an hour before Michelle finally walked into the bullpen.

She looked exhausted he noticed at first. The bags under her eyes were far more prominent than he'd ever seen them before; her t-shirt was crinkled and had a few patches of dirt smeared over it and there was a small gash in her right hand that looked like it had been tended to already. Her eyes widened when she noticed him and he rose from his chair as she walked through the glass doors.

"Hey," he smiled gently when the door closed behind her.

"Hi…" she croaked, slightly higher than she'd anticipated. "Why didn't you tell me you were-?"

"I didn't know until this morning …We had an all-nighter and saved Chappelle's ass…he was giving out weekends off like there was no tomorrow." he explained quickly.

She smiled a few seconds later, once the shock had worn off, and quickly pulled him into a bear hug.

"Sorry." He added; his voice sounding slightly wounded at the lukewarm welcome he'd received. "I missed you."

"Me too." she blushed, kissed him lightly and sunk into the embrace. "God, I missed you."

When he pulled out of the hug it was even more apparent how overworked she was. Her cheeks looked sunken and her eyes were foggy with thick bags under them. Her clothes hung loosely off her body and her complexion and skin were even more pallor than usual.

"You okay?" he asked, brushing the hair off her neck. "Dave said you just got back from-"

"I'm fine." She interrupted. "It's just been a long week."

He pulled a book out of his bag and handed it to her.

"Here…I picked this up on the way…I figured since you'll need something to entertain you on the plane home…"

Michelle laughed.

"Thank you."

He kissed the tip of her nose. "Welcome. Are you done?"

"Yeah." Her expression changed again and he studied her with concern.

"Good. Let's get out of here."

* * *

"You wanna go out for dinner?"

He yelled from the bed in her hotel room. The noise of the shower was making it difficult for them to converse and he was wondering if Michelle was glad for that. She'd seemed a little out of it the entire ride back to the hotel.

"Yeah, it's about all there is to do for food around here. I swear I've gained ten pounds since I left."

The shower stopped and Tony processed the comment carefully.

"You look like you've lost weight." He finally stated, noting as she stepped out from the bathroom that her collarbone was protruding more than it had been four weeks before. When holding her earlier he had certainly felt like there was a good bit less of her to hold.

"You're seeing things then." She brushed off as she used a second towel to dry her hair.

He watched her struggle to run a comb through her curls, all the while wondering what in the world was wrong. Once she'd lathered moisturizer on her face he climbed off the bed, wrapped his arms around her tightly, and nuzzled his mouth into her neck.

"You okay?" he asked softly, feeling her relax in his arms. She sighed deeply and leaned her head against his shoulder.

"Yeah..." She smiled and touched her fingers to his cheek. "Just tired…I really missed you."

He started to respond, but his sentence was cut off when she kissed him firmly and her tongue slipped into his mouth. She shifted around and managed to maneuver them both towards the bed; landing on top of him as she undid the buttons of his shirt.

* * *

Sunday afternoon she dropped the bomb. As much as she'd been holding off on it all weekend she didn't have a choice anymore. She had to tell him.

"They want me to stay." She said quietly from the doorway to the bathroom; a lot of their conversations over the weekend, however trivial, had occurred from this vantage point, as if she was trying to create a barrier between them. It was a minute before he sat up and looked at her like she was crazy. Her stomach fell.

"Who?"

"Dave asked me."

Tony looked furious.

"What are they playing at? You've already been here for a month; Gael can't do your work forever."

Michelle gulped and averted his gaze.

"I think I should."

"What the hell's that supposed to mean?" he started to shout.

"It means…" she began indignantly. "That there's still a lot of work to do here and they could use my help and unless something critical comes up Gael and Adam can distribute my work between them for another month."

"Another month – Michelle!"

She said nothing.

"When did Dave ask you?"

"Friday morning." She fidgeted with her sleeve.

"And when exactly were you gonna tell me? I've been here for two days and you decide to mention it just as I'm getting ready to go the airport!?"

"Because I knew you would do this... I'm sorry…I shouldn't have waited so long, but can you just...please try to understand?"

"Understand why you want to be here for another month when you haven't stopped talking about how miserable it is?"

"Tony…" She winced. "You know damn well that's not the reason I'm doing this. They need me here and I still think I can help. At least until my replacement can take over…"

He scowled and folded his arms across his chest.

"Tony please…" she took a few steps closer to him. "You know I'd rather be in LA but I can't…abandon everyone here when there's still so much work to do…"

He pushed past her and reached for his jacket.

"I'd better get to the airport."

He leaned over as he picked up his bag and pecked her cheek flatly.

"I'll call ya when I land."

Michelle didn't say anything; she was afraid she might start crying if she did.


	11. Torn

**A/N: **_Thanks so much to those of you who reviewed! I really appreciate all the feedback I got last chapter and it definitely inspired me to write this one a.s.a.p. I'm __hoping__ to have another one up sometime early next week since I start work for the summer and generally don't do too well with writing then…so I'll try my best! Hopefully you guys enjoy this one as well…thanks again : ). _

Chapter Eleven - Torn

It wasn't like she'd had a choice in the matter. Technically, yes, only Chappelle or Tony could really order her to do anything and she could've said no. But had it _really_ been a choice, she would've left in a heartbeat. Hell, she would've followed Tony to the airport and straight onto the plane. But this was Washington, DC and they, as much as anyone, had to be running flawlessly. And the thought of running home to LA and then hearing about some horrible disaster that was plaguing the city because their Counter Terrorist Unit was not what it should be…how could she live with herself? It wasn't a business; it wasn't about games or stock prices or market influence…leaving too soon meant people could get hurt and there was no way she could let that happen. It was her job to do everything she could to make sure that _didn't _happen.

Tony knew that, she _knew_ he knew that but he always put them first, whereas she put everyone else. It was why they worked, really. Two people like her in a relationship would never last. She was the devoted professional and he was willing to put work on the backburner for the sake of them. It tore her up – feeling this compulsion to choose the job over her husband – but she couldn't help it.

He was furious. In fact, she was pretty sure she'd never seen him that mad in the entire time she'd known him. He yelled…at work; when he was frustrated or angry or whatever. She'd learned early on that it was rarely personal, (in fact she was pretty certain the only time it had been personal was the day she went behind his back to help Jack…but even that had stemmed from something unrelated to her). And even when she did get upset, it only made her more indignant. She had some quick retort on hand to remind him that she wasn't a pushover and she only did what she truly thought was the right thing to do.

But this time…to say it had rattled her would be an understatement. When he'd slammed her door shut she'd tried to move to the bed and realized she was shaking from his reaction. Part of it was due the exhaustion, part of it was because she felt guilty for a number of reasons, and part of it was because she wanted, more than anything, to admit he was right on some level and she couldn't do it anymore.

But she didn't.

He called her when he landed, but it couldn't have been more apparent that the call was placed purely out of obligation than of the actual desire to try and have a conversation. His voice was low and vehement and the underlying bitterness was obvious. It was basically nothing more than an, "I'm here, the plane didn't crash and I'm going home now. I'll call you when I've cooled off." though not in so many words.

She spent the entire evening kicking herself for waiting so long to tell him she was staying. That was a huge mistake. He hadn't had time to yell out everything he wanted to yell before he had to sit and stew on a plane – it wasn't giving him time to calm down, it was giving him time to get more riled up.

It had been selfish on her part. She knew, in good conscience, she should've told him on Friday…but she hadn't counted on him showing up like he did. The idea of ruining what would be the first and only weekend they would have together in a long time held her back. If she brought it up there would be no detachment, the weekend would be all about work and she didn't need that. She wanted to push the thoughts to the back of her mind so she could regenerate and prepare to do it all over again.

On another level, she just didn't know how to break it to him. She couldn't bring herself to say it – to see that look on his face, a muddled mixture of sheer anger, frustration and disappointment. Again, selfish. Now, not only had he left angry, but they wouldn't have a chance to make up in person for likely another four weeks.

She crumpled to the bed, her head in her hands, knowing how badly she'd screwed up.

* * *

He'd never been so angry with someone in his entire life. Sure, people had done worse things to him…but this was Michelle. _Michelle_ who had literally given him about three minutes to process the fact that she had decided to extend her stay to double what it once was…who, after the anthrax-outbreak, (and even before if he was being honest), had been the only thing on his mind. As angry as he was, it hurt more than anything else that she would be gone for what seemed like forever. He'd missed her company since the first night practically, and had yet to accept the fact that when he stumbled in the door after an exceptionally long day at CTU she wouldn't be there…

He remembered the first time he'd found her in his apartment. She'd given him her key a little less than a week before and her justification at moving what seemed quickly had been that he was going away for a few days and she wanted him with her when he came back.

But the first time he'd found her in his apartment…that had been something else.

He'd come home a few minutes before midnight after being on an exceptionally long Conference call with Hammond and having ordered her back to his place to wait for him, (that being when he gave her the key).

_"Tony it's okay…I'll just see you in the morning…" she attempted to rationalize and he'd scoffed it off. It was harder for him than it was for her, rightfully. It was like giving her full reign over every aspect of his life, and he was still learning to trust her slowly. _

_"After a couple of hours talking to Hammond all I want is you with me all…" he slipped his hand around her waist. "…night…" he pressed her lightly against the wall, his arm resting a few inches from her head. "…long…" she gasped slightly and he nuzzled his lips against hers briefly before releasing her. _

After that she'd practically ripped the key from his hand and nodded her agreement eagerly. He'd laughed softly and she'd blushed ever-so slightly at the way he was looking at her.

So when he came home and she was there he, for the first time, got to see what it might be like to be married to her. That was why he loved the memory so much. It was the first time it occurred to him how the best thing in his life would be to have her there all the time.

She was standing in the kitchen by the kettle, a mug resting beside it with the string of a teabag hanging out. The first three buttons of her blouse had been undone; her heels, purse and jacket were scattered somewhere in the hall; her hair was still pulled back but there were a lot more loose pieces than there had been first thing in the morning; and she was leaning back against the counter, arms folded, waiting for the water to boil.

He wanted to maul her…seriously, and despite his exhaustion, his heart started to pound. And the thing was, it wasn't _only _that he wanted to throw her against the wall and tear away her clothes because she looked so attractive to him in that moment…he liked knowing that she was there. That he could turn around and disappear and she would still be there when he came back. It was picture perfect. Her, standing in his apartment, completely and totally relaxed, and looking as though she just belonged there…and that she wanted to stay there forever…

He'd approached quietly, her having obviously not heard the door open over the noise of the kettle, and slipped an arm around her waist as he placed a kiss against the side of her neck.

"Hey…" he smirked as she jumped a little at first and then melted against him.

"You scared me." She chastised him and he kissed her again.

"Sorry." He moved past her to pour her tea, while one hand remained firmly on her hip.

"I'm glad you're here." He told her, surrounding her with both arms and pressing his lips against her hair.

She sighed happily as she added sugar and he swayed them both softly back and forth.

"Me too."

After a few minutes of standing there, her head tilted back against his shoulder, she finally spoke:

"Tony…"

"Mhm…" his response was groggy, as if he'd fallen asleep on her.

"I need milk…"

"Huh?"

"For my tea…" she laughed softly. "I need milk for my tea."

"Right…" he released her and went to retrieve the milk.

She was grinning, slightly lopsidedly, when he turned to face her again. As he handed her the carton she'd placed it on the counter, placed a hand on his cheek and kissed him warmly. It made his stomach churn and he smiled to himself when she pulled away…knowing that he'd have been crazy to hold off on giving her a key for much longer. Namely, if it meant infinite evenings like this. The way she looked at him in that moment made him feel like he'd done something heroic…when all he did was find a way to keep her closer to him for longer.

And now she had been gone for four weeks. Four damn weeks of coming home to an empty house; four weeks of worrying, four weeks of anticipating the next time she'd call – hopefully to announce her return flight had been booked. Four weeks and he now had to do it all over again because someone else needed her.

It wasn't fair, he needed her too.

But the thing was, while he could be angry at her for not telling him she was staying, he couldn't be angry at her for wanting to stay. That was Michelle. That was what Michelle did. She was there when someone needed her, and she wouldn't quit until the job was good and done. He wished she could learn to be selfish like that…he wished he could teach her. But he couldn't be mad at her for it. How could he, when the fact that she did things like this was (despite how frustrated he got as a result) one of the reasons he loved her so much?

* * *

He called her mid-morning on the Thursday following his departure. She hadn't spoken to him since Sunday night and he, despite his stubbornness, knew he didn't want to go another day without at least talking to her.

"Dessler." She still sounded exhausted and his heart ached a little in contrast to his mind telling him he still had every right to be pissed off.

"Hey." His tone was dull and flat. Not warm or even remotely animated.

"Hey…" she sounded hopeful.

"You busy?" he reeled out disinterestedly.

"Uh no…just uh…" she started clicking away furiously at her computer. "Just give me a second."

Two minutes later she was standing at the entrance to the office, grateful that there wasn't anything pressing that required her attention. The fact that he had called was something, and she wanted to talk to him now.

"Alright, sorry…I can talk now."

"How are you?" his voice was still emotionless.

"Fine…" she gulped hard. "How are you?"

"Okay…" he trailed off, as though he was thinking of what to say next.

"Honey, I'm so sorry…" her voice broke slightly and he felt as though the wind got knocked out of him, though he fought to maintain the cold shoulder he fully intended to exhibit. The fact he'd called at all meant he had caved slightly and she wasn't getting anymore than that right now.

"I should've told you sooner."

"Yeah." He finished dryly. "You should've."

"I'm sorry." She repeated, her voice more steady now. "I wasn't thinking."

"No…You weren't."

"And I wouldn't blame you if you were still mad at me."

"Good to know."

She sighed; getting him to come around now wasn't going to be easy.

"But…they need me here. And if something were to happen because I left them hanging in the middle of reconstruction I…"

His voice softened, almost unnoticeably. It would've been unnoticeable to anyone but her.

"I know."

"And I…" she swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat. "I love you."

"Yeah…" he sighed a little. "I know that too."

She didn't know what to say after that and he filled the void with a semi-reluctant.

"I guess I'll let ya get back to work. I'm sure you're swamped."

She hung her head, pressing her fingers against her brow.

"Alright."

"I'll uh…talk to you later maybe."

" 'Kay."

And that was how they conversed for the next week and a half. Occasionally she would ask about work and he would fill her in on the details. More than once Ryan called to see how things were progressing and thank her for putting in the extra time – District and Division alike were impressed at her dedication. _I don't care. _She wanted to tell him. I want to go home where I actually get credit for what I'm doing, not where someone else gets to pass off my work as their own. Tony would never do that, obviously. George Mason had never done that to her, and Ryan, though always trying to remain in a good place with the most senior people, still gave credit where credit was due.

Kelly, however, always seemed to be getting the praise for the adjustments made to the infrastructure, and the personnel, as well as their handling of the active protocols. Michelle wasn't sure, but it seemed as though he was always in his office filing papers and she was always the one on the floor. Tony, during an active operation, would _never _leave the floor. He was always less than a few feet away in case split-second decisions had to be made. Kelly put the burden on Michelle and took credit for her quick thinking when his superiors called to congratulate him. Her name was rarely mentioned. The only thing that kept her going was the fact that it was no longer about what was best for her career, but about what was best for the city. She could live with that.

* * *

Part way into her seventh week at CTU, an active lead came in. Apparently one of the suspects involved in the anthrax attacks that had eluded capture had been spotted. She told Kelly right away and he called a meeting, asking her what she thought the best course of action was and then designating tasks based on her suggestions. Michelle fought back an eye roll.

"Alright people, I want the tactical teams to prepare for an assault. Set up a 1-mile perimeter and cover all entrances and exits to the street."

"Let me know when we have him, I'm going to get on the phone with Langley." Kelly told her on his way off the floor, retreating to his office again.

She scowled, but focused on the task at hand.

"Team A, what's your position?"

"We're outside the house, Michelle. So far no activity and no lights are on. How do you want us to proceed?"

"Prepare for the takedown, but I want that perimeter air-tight before you move in."

"Yes ma'am."

Fifteen minutes later the suspect was in custody.

"Bring him back to CTU for interrogation." Michelle ordered.

"There was a problem." The young agent began, obviously shaken. "His son came in at the last minute. He was caught in the crossfire."

"How the hell did that happen?" she shouted angrily. "Who let him go inside…?"

"Agent Samson thought he might have been involved and wanted to bring him in for questioning as well."

"Who authorized that?"

"Mr. Kelly."

Michelle slammed her hand against the table angrily.

"Bring the suspect in for questioning _now_." She ordered before storming towards Kelly's office.

"You authorized Lou to takedown the suspect's son!" she blasted, the color rising in her cheeks.

"We think he was involved, Michelle. Lower your voice."

"The son is dead!" she ignored him; forgetting the last time she'd lost her control as she was now. "He had no terrorist involvement. Our field teams just killed an innocent American."

"The father is foreign."

"And if you'd checked the profile, you'd have realized the kid was born in New England to an American mother. How do you want to explain that to DOD?"

"Let me worry about that." He stated calmly. "You just worry about what you're responsible for."

"Funny…" she retorted. "That's what I thought I was doing."

He started to answer but she was already gone.

* * *

At midnight, after the suspect had been interrogated and put on a transport to Guantanamo, Ryan called her as she was finishing up the situation report.

"Michelle, I was just informed that an operation you were in charge of resulted in an innocent American casualty."

"What?" she couldn't believe this. She couldn't believe it was happening. "What do you mean?"

"David Kelly contacted District; apparently you authorized the takedown of a suspect and his son – despite the fact that the son had no criminal record and nothing suggesting he might be involved in -"

"Kelly authorized the takedown!" she blurted out, forgetting her composure yet again. "I didn't even know about it until the son was already dead."

Ryan sighed. "I've convinced Vaughan to keep this quiet, but he insists that you're removed from your position immediately."

"You can't - "

"There's nothing I can do, Michelle. It's your word against Kelly's and he's your superior and has a much longer, more distinguished record."

"He's completely -"

"Michelle…" Ryan cut her off. "I'm aware of these issues regarding him, as is District, but Kelly has friends in high places and there's nothing I can do. I'm sorry. Come back to LA and you can resume your duties at CTU next week."

She hung her head, knowing she was defeated.

"Fine, Ryan."

"I'm fighting my hardest to have the incident expunged from your permanent record…but that will be something to deal with over the coming weeks."

She sighed heavily.  
"Alright."

"I'll see you on Monday."

"You can come by tomorrow and clean out your station." Kelly told her, appearing almost instantly after she hung up the phone.

Michelle glared. "You're a son of a bitch…after everything…I took the fall for your idiotic mistake."

"It's a dog eat dog world, Michelle." He told her patiently, the malice underlying his tones apparent to her. "You can't be married to all of us."

Her eyes flashed and her heart pounded.

"I'll be out by tonight." She told him coldly.

He nodded and was gone.

* * *

It was almost 2am when she finally stepped outside of CTU, her cheeks were flushed and she was grateful for the crisp breeze that helped soothe her slightly. As she moved through the parking garage her coat pocket started jingling.

"Dessler."

"It's me." Tony didn't sound bitter any more. "Chappelle called."

"He did?" she asked with surprise.

"Yeah he uh…thought I should hear what happened before Kelly's version got out there." He clawed at his brow anxiously. He definitely sounded at lot more like the Tony she was used to at home. The sarcasm was gone and the tenderness had returned.

"How ya doin'?"

She shrugged. "Been better…Kelly disabled my user ID before he left tonight…I guess they're not wasting any time." His chest constricted when he heard the defeat in he voice.

She had just finished loading her things into the car when one of the security guards appeared.

"Ms. Dessler." The guard approached and she tilted the phone away from her mouth.

"Mr. Kelly just called a minute ago. Since you won't be returning he needs you to leave the vehicle here."

She swore quietly.

"What happened?" Tony asked.

"Kelly wants me to hand over the car. It's two-o-clock in the goddamn morning…"

"I called you a cab." The guard looked apologetic. "I'm sorry for the inconvenience. I can help you move your things."

She smiled a little for the first time all day.

"Thanks, I'm fine."

He nodded slightly. "I'll come find you when it's arrived."

"Thank you."

"I want to come home." She felt the lump rise in her throat.

"I know…"

"I've hated it here from day one and I was busting my ass for this stupid office and in the end, what'd it get me…"

"You did it for the right reasons, Michelle. You couldn't have known this would happen."

"Yeah…listen I'm gonna grab my stuff so I'm ready when the cab comes. I'll let you know what flight I get."

"Alright."

The call ended and Michelle wiped her eyes. After this disaster she couldn't get home fast enough.

* * *

Much to Michelle's dismay, there were no flights available for her until late the Friday evening. Already overworked and so tired she could keel over, she opted to wait until early Saturday afternoon – giving her an entire day to sleep and pack and ensuring she wouldn't be trying to organize a pickup in the middle of the night. When she'd told Tony her flight time, he'd waved away her assurances that she could grab a cab home like she was utterly insane. That more than anything relaxed her. She ended up sleeping well past noon on Friday and spent the rest of the day packing before calling it an early night, ordering a pizza and falling asleep to a movie.

She was being taken the airport when it hit her like a ton of bricks that the last time she had been in DC was when her dad had been in the hospital. For some reason, with everything that had been happening the notion had escaped her. Perhaps, after that, she just wasn't meant to be in Washington anymore. She almost laughed at how irrational that sounded. Her home was where Tony was – obviously.

* * *

Someone knocked on Tony's office on Saturday afternoon, a day and a half after the whole disaster. The door swung open mid-knock, the person on the other end clearly not waiting for his acknowledgement and only knocking in the first place out of formality. He was hunched over his desk, going over the status report for the day.

"What is it Chloe?" he contained a groan.

"I need you to sign off on the security updates…" she sighed, as though irritated at the prospect at needing anyone's approval for anything.

He reached for the document and scribbled quickly without lifting his head.

"And I'm going to need you to clear the new pass codes once I'm done…since Michelle's still not back."

"I'm leaving at 4:30…" he cut her off. "Gael can do it for you."

"Gael doesn't have the security clear -"

"It was bumped up by Division provisionally for stuff like that. He'll finish it off when you're done."

"Fine…" she stalked off, as though being incredibly inconvenienced by him ducking out a little early. But Michelle's plane was landing just after 5 and he'd be damned if he wasn't going to be there to pick her up… The tensions of the past few weeks aside, she'd been gone for almost two months and he missed her like crazy.

* * *

Michelle felt like she was just waiting for her legs to give out from underneath as she moved through the airport terminal. The flight delay had been the final straw. After being away for almost two months she just wanted to be home in her own bed. When the captain had informed the passengers that, because of traffic, they would be in a holding pattern until it was their turn to land she had almost burst into tears. She didn't want to be patient any longer.

Tony looked so serious when she finally saw him standing there she had to smile. It felt like she hadn't smiled in forever.

"Hey," she approached him slowly, her tiredness obvious through her stride.

"Hey," he continued to watch her carefully, eyes narrowed. "How was your flight?"

Michelle shrugged. "Fine."

And then after a few seconds of taking in each other's presence she blurted out:

"I wouldn't blame you if you were still mad…"

"I'm not mad." He cut her off. "Not anymore."

"I'm sorry…" her eyes stung slightly and her voice faltered. "I didn't mean to…"

His watched her intently at first, and was wrapping his arms around her before she was finished speaking. The words trailed off and got buried in his chest.

"Let's go home, hmm?" He told the top of her head. His hands stroked her back gently. She mumbled her agreement into his shirt.

She was about to tell him exactly how much she'd missed him, but decided against it. It wasn't like he didn't know anyway. The actual verbalization of it would just be an unnecessary formality. She'd much rather explain it to him without words; by kissing his face tenderly when he pulled her towards the glass doors and spending an extra second warming his neck with her breath. His hand trailed unobtrusively around her waist and underneath the back of her jacket just to feel that little bit closer to her as they walked back to the car.

* * *

When they stepped into the house, she started to announce her plans to go change when he held her back

"Not yet…" he pulled her towards him and closed his arms around her. She relaxed almost instantly and her hands circled her back as her chin came to rest on his shoulder. She never asked what he was doing and he was grateful…Instead, she exhaled deeply and absorbed as much as she could from the embrace. It felt good.

"I got an idea." He muttered, the words falling into her hair, the slightest hint of suggestiveness in his voice.

"Mhm…" she tilted her head so her lips pressed against his skin and made him shiver slightly.

"I think you and I…" his breath tickled her ear and she sighed softly. "Should head upstairs…" he nibbled against her neck. "And get you out of those clothes…" one hand slid beneath her shirt. "And into a shower…" he kissed the corner of her mouth teasingly, and despite the gentleness she felt herself getting excited.

"Maybe a bath?" she suggested innocently and he smirked and sealed his lips around hers. His hand cupped her face, while the other tightened around her waist. His tongue parted her lips slightly as she brought both hands to his face, deepening the kiss.

"C'mon…" he broke away slightly breathless and grabbed her hand tugging her towards the stairs.

"I'll run the bath…" he told her once they'd stepped inside the bedroom. "And you can just uh…" he cocked his head to one side and smirked again. "You can just get rid of these clothes."

By the time she sunk beneath the blissfully hot, bubble-filled water she felt like she'd died and gone to heaven. When he pulled her in close, his hands all over her slick skin as she rested against his chest, she was certain of it.

She uttered something that sounded vaguely distasteful and was most certainly work related – so he kissed her cheek, willing the tension to abscond from her muscles as his fingers gently manipulated them. She sighed happily and said nothing else as he mumbled sweet nothings with his lips buried against her neck.

"You know I love you, Michelle." He told her quietly.

She nodded, her eyes brimming with tears as she recalled the how it became a question in her mind after her stormed out of the room…even if it had resolved itself an instant later.

He craned his neck around and looked at her skeptically for a few seconds before pressing their lips together. She responded eagerly.

"Don't ever forget it." He warned, a hint of teasing in his voice as he kissed her again.

This got a small laugh. As if she could…


	12. Two Steps ForwardOne Step Back

Chapter Twelve – Two Steps Forward…One Step Back

It was Saturday. It was Saturday and it was raining. It was Saturday and it was raining and Tony was bored. They had the afternoon off after being stuck in the office into the early hours of the morning. They'd stumbled into the door just after 1:30 that afternoon, pleased to see that summer had officially arrived and that it was warm and sunny and they could enjoy the night after a brief catnap. He had Sunday off and she wasn't expected in the office until eleven the next day. They had every intention of getting outside in the evening; perhaps going for a walk, getting ice cream, something simple and summery that they rarely had the time to do or wanted to waste the time doing during a regular work week. Sometimes ridiculously late nights were a blessing in disguise; it was the best chance they had of obtaining a day (or almost day) off together.

So, after a quick bite to eat they'd set an alarm and crawled onto the couch together, not bothering to suggest the bed since they were way too comfortable to move. He'd simply tightened his grip around her waist to prevent her falling off and tugged a blanket around their shoulders as she settled against his chest.

But when he woke up a few hours later it was to the sound of fat raindrops against the roof and windows and the occasion blitz of lightening and deafening crack of thunder. Tony groaned and buried his head back into the cushion, well aware that their evening plans were shot to hell. The storm grew closer and the next time the thunder came it shook Michelle awake. Initially she jumped, but then relaxed upon realizing what all the commotion was about.

"Perfect…" she sighed. "Just perfect…"

He groaned again in agreement. It was just their luck. The weather had been gorgeous all week – not too hot or stuffy. The drastic increase in humidity when they left the office should've been their first clue, but both had been too consumed with their thoughts to bother with the news or weather reports.

And now it was raining.

"I guess we won't be getting out of the house now…" Michelle grumbled, twisting her body against his to find a comfortable position.

"Guess not…" he yawned and readjusted his grip on her. "I'll still make spaghetti for dinner though."

She smiled slightly to herself.

"I guess that'll have to do."

"And if ya want we can rent a mov -"

As if on cue, every light in the house simultaneously turned off, as well as the TV. They were left dumbfounded in the gray twilight of early evening as the rain continued to patter.

"Damn it." Tony muttered, sitting upright and moving towards the curtains. It appeared they weren't the only ones without power from the looks of the street.

"Like I said…" Michelle groaned. "Perfect."

Twenty minutes later every candle in the house had been lit and Tony had dug the emergency flashlight out from the cupboard. The phones were working, as Danny had just called a few minutes before asking Michelle if their power was out – apparently huge chunks of the city were facing the same problem. The thunder continued to rock the house and it became more unsettling thanks to the fact that there was barely any light. The candles left the house with an eerily orange glow and, worst of all, the air conditioning was out. They were right smack dab in the middle of a muggy, LA summer thunderstorm and they had no air conditioning.

An hour and a half into it Tony had kicked off his jeans and settled into the leather armchair, wincing as the fabric stuck painfully to his legs every time he tried to move. Michelle was in track pants and a tank top, taking up the length of the couch. She'd rearranged a few candles on the end table and had stolen the flashlight, providing her with just enough light to make out the pages of her book. When he'd reprimanded her for wasting their only source of light on reading she'd reminded him casually, her eyes never leaving the page, of the _other _flashlight in the toolbox and the unopened package of batteries in the bottom drawer in the kitchen. He was bored and wanted entertainment but she was quite enjoying her book at the moment.

A light blanket was draped pointlessly across her legs, which were propped up against an arm rest tilting her body slightly.

Really, Tony had two options. He could leave her alone and continue to be bored out of his mind, or, even worse, crack open his laptop and try to do some actual work. Or…he could join her on the couch. It was already dark, they were already sweaty, and the candles did offer a certain romantic ambience.

Stealthily, he dragged himself out of the chair, wincing as his skin clung to the leather, and crossed the room, amused that she was so engrossed in her novel that she didn't even think to look up. She finally did when his shadow prevented her from seeing the page entirely.

"You're in my light." she stated obviously.

Tony smirked and did not make a point to move. Instead he leaned over and pulled the book and flashlight from her hands. He rested them on the coffee table while lifting a leg over the couch and planting it on the floor against Michelle's far thigh.

"Tony..." she laughed, as he moved his other leg into position, lodged between the back of the couch and Michelle's knee. He bent down to kiss her neck, using one hand to pin hers to the armrest while she continued to struggle against him.

"Don't fight it honey..." he chuckled as his free hand tossed the blanket to the side before sliding underneath her shirt. Inch-by-inch it revealed part of her stomach and Michelle stopped resisting when fingers teasingly traced the edge of her bra before trailing back down towards her belly button.

"Tony..." she whispered, giving up on any protests and grateful his hands released her so she could draw his mouth to hers. She sucked hard on his bottom lip, hands outlining every part of his face, and moaning softly into his mouth when both sets of fingers caressed her stomach.

It was then that the phone rang.

Tony groaned in defeat before pulling himself up and going in search of it.

"I think I left it in the kitchen!" Michelle called after him as he ran out of the room. When Tony didn't return after a few minutes she began readjusting her shirt and retied her hair, skin still tingling from the contact. She picked her book off the table and started to head towards the office when a hand grabbed hers.

"Hey..." Tony turned her around, tossing the book carelessly to the floor. "I'm not done with you yet..."

And with that Michelle found herself pushed up against the wall as a knee forced her legs apart and the same hand went back to work underneath her shirt.

His hands slid languidly over her skin and her own made their way underneath his t-shirt and eased it over his head before tossing it recklessly to the ground. Her pants had been removed a minute later and she was practically lifted out of them, his lips sucking on her collar now, as the moved away from the discarded clothes and further along the wall. Nails dug into his slick, sweaty skin; one set into his shoulders and the other into the small of his back and pulled him closer to press her hips firmly into his.

She laughed breathlessly when his face contorted and he groaned as her hands slid down his boxers. She pressed her lips lightly against his ear and nibbled gently. It wasn't long before her bra and panties were gone and his hand moved between her legs; making her gasp and press her head back against the wall.

She didn't even notice his boxers were gone until he pushed inside of her. It was over much faster than either had expected. She writhed and moaned and clutched him hard against her as she climaxed in his arms.

By some miracle he held both their weights upright, preventing her from crumpling to the floor. She smiled punch-drunkenly at him as he tucked her sweaty hair behind her ears and lifted her to the bedroom where the windows were open. A light breeze licked their sensitized skin and they lay silently on top of the covers for a few minutes – not touching – regaining their breaths.

"Who was on the phone?" she asked when her heart stopped pounding.

"Alicia…I told her you were busy. I think she got the picture" He smirked and she laughed out loud.

"_Great…_" she lay silently for a few minutes before sitting herself upright. "I should call her back before it gets too late there."

His hand slid around her waist and he pulled her back towards the mattress.

"She'll get over it." He mumbled groggily.

"Tony…" she protested and he chuckled and kissed her cheek.

"Few more minutes…"

* * *

"Isn't a little early for sex?" Alicia teased mercilessly when Michelle called her back.

"We had a power outage." She responded calmly, not realizing how utterly incriminating that simple sentence was.

Alicia laughed outright.

"Spare me the details…I don't want to know."

"You're hysterical." Michelle retorted sarcastically as she settled back down on the couch with her legs crossed underneath her. The power company was working slowly through each grid and they still had no air conditioning. Tony was still lying on the bed – probably still in nothing but boxers to fight off the heat – while she had slipped on a baggy t-shirt before emerging.

"I'm sure you've done worse, anyway."

"Worse than sex in my own house?" Alicia taunted. "Yeah, I'll have to agree with you there."

Michelle blushed slightly. "We're not all as adventurous as you."

"I hate to break it to you, Michelle…but you're not adventurous at all. In most social circles _I'd_ be the tame one. You need to live a little."

"I'm quite happy right now, thanks."

"I'm sure you are."

Michelle laughed before steering the conversation away from dangerous waters. It was all in good fun and they both knew that. What was she supposed to do anyway? Seduce her husband in his office at work? That wouldn't exactly go over so well and would be entirely inappropriate and awkward and she'd feel horribly guilty doing it. The closest she'd come to being "adventurous" was…probably on the very couch she was sitting on with the blinds being open while things started to heat up.

She was boring…fine. The sex sure as hell wasn't. Alicia was just teasing anyway.

"So what's up?"

"_I_ am going to Paris." Alicia stated happily. "For two weeks. My boss is sending me and I uh…" she hesitated, gauging herself for whatever reaction she might receive. "I invited Ian."

"You did?" Michelle raised her eyebrows. "Two weeks in another country with your new boyfriend?"

Alicia bit her lip. "Yeah…I know it seems stupid. But I'll be working a lot of the time anyway so it's not like we're gonna live and breathe each other for that entire trip…"

"Is that a good thing?"

"Well…we can do our own things during the day – he's bringing along his own work and he's into that whole artsy thing so he can do all that kind of stuff while I'm with the clients and then we can just do whatever at night…"

"Whatever, huh?"

Alicia laughed.

"Yes, what_ever_."

Michelle smiled slightly on her end of the phone. Alicia hadn't been so excited at the prospect of a new relationship – or anything for that matter – in a long time. She'd met Ian at some work function, and had neglected to mention anything to Michelle until she inadvertently called in the middle of the night after the anthrax scare in DC to reassure Alicia things were fine.

When she'd called Ian had answered the phone.

"There's a very good chance this'll come back to bite me in the ass and I'll ruin the entire thing. But…I'll take a shot I guess. Might work out…"

"Either way it's Paris." Michelle rationalized, making Alicia laugh again.

"That's what I figure." There was a few seconds silence. "Anything has to be better than what happened to you in DC."

"Don't remind me…"

By the time Michelle crawled back into bed later that night, the power was back on. She fell on top of the covers, relishing in the sound of the air conditioning firing up again as she dozed off to sleep.

* * *

"Alright," Tony muttered as he descended into the living room where most of the furniture had been cleared. "You're sure you wanna do this? I mean I wouldn't want you to get hurt or anything."

Michelle laughed dryly. "You're just afraid I'm gonna take you out."

He laughed this time.

"Right…that's why you _asked_ me for help…"

"I never asked you for anything."

He said nothing. Just raised an eyebrow as if to say "yeah, right."

She rolled her eyes. She _might've_ mentioned innocuously, in a non-committal sort of way that she would, perhaps, be interested in brushing up on her hand-to-hand combat skills. And he, always looking for the opportunity to show off, (or teach her how to take care of herself, she hadn't decided which version she was gonna go with), had volunteered to help her out.

For a while they were serious. She was attentive and he patiently showed her maneuver after maneuver until she got it right. Eventually they started getting tired and the whole thing became very funny. Somehow she ended up tackling him when he wasn't expecting it and fell onto the couch in fits of laughter while he tried to brush it off as though he'd intended for the entire thing to happen. After that he stopped being so patient and started being more competitive. Despite her best attempts she never pinned him again, and started becoming frustrated with herself as he easily sent her careening to the floor time and time again.

"You need some serious work, Michelle." He _tsk_'ed, feigning disappointment. She scowled as he helped her up, the frustration making it more and more difficult for her to land a decent shot before he finally ended up pinning her against the floor with his body as she struggled pointlessly against him. She could've gotten out of it, she assured herself. But she wasn't about to play _that_ rough.

He chuckled at her indignation and kissed her forehead before releasing her and retreating without another word.

* * *

The weeks flew by and gradually DC became nothing but a distant memory. They'd put the unpleasantness of those months behind them the night Michelle returned and had never looked back. It was over anyway, what would've been the point?

The problem was that while _they_ put the events in the past, where they belonged, Ryan and Michelle had more one on one meetings than she cared to count, discussing that and only that. He wanted to know exactly what happened, every nitty-gritty detail of her confrontations with Kelly from the moment she stepped through the doors of CTU Washington. He probed her to no end, and Michelle would've been frustrated beyond belief had she not realized that every one of these sessions was simply exemplifying Ryan Chappelle's adamancy to help her put this behind her, both professionally and personally. He was still Ryan Chappelle and he still conducted everything in his own blunt, emotionless, Ryan Chappelle way. But he was trying his best to see she didn't get penalized for something he truly believed she had not done, for whatever reason, and she was grateful.

Six weeks after her return from DC Ryan called her to Division one afternoon to discuss the results of the incident.

"Hey Michelle…" he shook her hand formally as she seated herself in front of him. Her palms were sweating slightly but she tried not to show that she was nervous. Instead she sat upright, her hands folded neatly in her lap and her legs crossed. A middle-aged woman she was not introduced to sat in the corner, pen poised over a pad a paper. She began scribbling notes as soon as Ryan spoke.

"So I'm assuming this is about the meeting yesterday."

It was probably the stupidest, most captain-obvious statement she'd ever made in her entire professional career. Essentially, she was saying something just to make noise…break the tension. She wanted to kick herself afterwards. Ryan, however, didn't seem phased.

"It is. The Division Chief for Washington was present, as was Brad Hammond. We went over the testimonies of both parties over what transpired during your term in DC and it was decided that it was simply a clash of two personalities in a professional setting."

She wanted to protest – badly – but knew better. If there was one thing she'd learned in the last few weeks it was that Ryan, without a doubt, had her back.

"The death of the boy was a _severe _oversight as a result of miscommunication from both parties but despite Kelly's _compelling _statement about how you knowingly gave the order to terminate if necessary…"

There was a subtle inflection of sarcasm in his tone and Michelle relaxed slightly, reminding herself yet again that he would sort this out in the best way possible…for her.

"He was the ranking officer and the fact that he wasn't even present when this operation was going on – a fact Kelly admits to – means he too has a role in this."

Michelle's heart started pounding as the words sunk in.

"As well," the corners of his lips curved upwards subtly. "Brad and I both discovered a few _holes_ in Kelly's recount, leaving us to believe that your statement was the more accurate of the two."

She swallowed hard.

"So, Kelly's on probation for the next six months, as are you for the next three. At the end of the term you'll be evaluated by both myself and Bauer and based on that we'll see about getting the incident expunged entirely. Kelly won't have that option."

"So no criminal charges?"

"No. It was collateral damage. As far as we can tell no orders were given to terminate the boy if necessary and it was merely a tragic accident."

_Even though Kelly practically gave the order…_she thought bitterly. She reminded herself that he had friends in high places, (higher than Hammond apparently), and there wasn't much she could do about that. At least she wasn't getting charged.

"So barring any unforeseen circumstances…" Ryan stated calmly, almost gently. "Three months from now it'll be like this never happened."

It was the best she could've hoped for really. Yes, it would be annoying to have to have Tony or Jack approve any order she gave for the next three months. It would cause delays and be a huge blow to her confidence but she'd get over it.

"Thank you, Ryan." She stated quietly. He fumbled a little awkwardly and then patted her hand briskly with his.

"This shouldn't have happened and I apologize. You did everything right Michelle…"

"I appreciate that."

He nodded solemnly and ended the meeting due to the significant amount of paperwork he had to finish. He explained he'd be in contact with both Tony and Jack to go over the technicalities and the evaluation process. Michelle thanked him a second time as she left, a huge weight lifted off her shoulders.

* * *

Three months after Michelle's return, in the middle of one hot, muggy early-August afternoon, Jack pushed inside Tony's office looking a little tired and worse for wear.

"What's up?"

"Division wants us to tail the Salazars." He stated hoarsely. "They want to send someone undercover."

Tony sighed. "And you want to go?"

"It's not an option, Tony." Jack stated firmly. "I am going…"

Tony shifted his jaw to one side, knowing better than to resent the fact that he was receiving something that sounded suspiciously like an order from someone who was supposed to be his equal.

"Not by yourself. Division won't send you undercover without a partner."

"Then we'll find someone externally, none of these guys are qualified to handle something of this magnitude. We'll start recruiting immediately. With any luck we'll be in Mexico by October and making contact with the Ramon Salazar by winter."

Fingers clawing slightly at his cheek, Tony nodded.

"Let me know what you need."

"Thanks."

* * *

Michelle brought her hand to her mouth as they stepped into the CTU parking lot.

"Tired?" Tony asked as she swung her bag over her shoulder.

She nodded, still in mid-yawn. "Yeah…I couldn't fall asleep last night…"

He frowned. "Why not?"

She shrugged and placed her head on his shoulder, allowing her eyes to fall shut as he guided her to the car. It was a few seconds after she glanced in the passenger window before her brain registered what was sitting in the seat. After shooting Tony a half-disapproving, half-adoring, mouth-open-in-surprise look over the roof of the car she pulled open the door and picked up a bouquet of calla lilies.

She tilted her head to one side, smiled and spent a few seconds studying them. There was a small white card attached to the ribbon that said _Happy Anniversary _and made her a lot more emotional than it probably should have.  
"Thank you." She responded hoarsely, moved towards him and drew him into a firm embrace. He sighed happily and hugged back.

"I love you."

She inadvertently started to tear. "I love you too."

"I know it was a rough couple of weeks for you…with everything…"

After a few seconds she scanned the parking lot quickly and leaned in for a kiss. His hand slipped snugly around her waist while the other held her mouth firmly on his, making it last longer than she'd initially intended. His body pressed into hers and when they broke apart she was leaning against the car.

"Let's get out of here," she mumbled against his lips.

He nodded, brushed her nose gently with his, and kissed her one more time before they moved to their respective doors.


	13. Classified

**A/N: **_Hey everyone! I'm actually relatively on top of things again (because I swore I wasn't gonna get this chapter up until at least Christmas time…lol). Anyway, thanks very much to those who reviewed #12…and who have been reviewing this entire story. I LOVE getting feedback and just knowing people are still reading._

_So this chapter…bit of a gamble. Special thank you to Tooth Fairy who allowed me to bounce my original idea off of her and helped rework the plot and well…saved it, essentially… Hopefully you guys like it…: )_

Chapter Thirteen – Classified

"Hey…" Jack pushed his way into Tony's office looking slightly disheveled. It was a little over a month after their anniversary and despite a few mild threats there had been only one thing on everyone's mind since.

Tony raised an eyebrow and glanced away from his laptop.

"What's up?"

"I just got back from the interviews with Chappelle…for someone to go undercover with…"

"And I take it no one was jumping out at you?"

Jack scowled slightly. "I'm not taking any of those kids down to Mexico with me."

"Well you can't go alone." Tony reminded him impatiently. "So you may as well get that outta your head. Division won't authorize an undercover operation if you don't have a partner. Especially when you're dealing with -"

"I know what I'm dealing with Tony. And I'm telling you now I'd be better off alone than taking someone fresh out of Quantico." Jack snapped harshly. "So we need to find someone else."

Tony sighed heavily. "You'll also need a contact in Mexico."

"Yeah I know." Jack shook his head. "And that's not looking any more promising at this rate."

"Look, we still have a couple of weeks and if we have to delay it a few days until we have the right people…"

"The longer we wait the longer it'll be before we infiltrate their inner circle. Something could go down by then…"

"Well that's a risk I'm willing to take if it means having the right people in place to handle this." Tony responded firmly before sighing deeply and scratching the back of his neck. "I'll make a few calls, alright?"

Jack nodded gruffly and they both remained motionless for a moment.

"Have you said anything to Kate?" Tony ventured carefully. "Or Kim?"

"It's classified."

"So you don't plan on mentioning you'll be disappearing for a while?" he raised an eyebrow surreptitiously.

"I'm not saying anything until we have the details finalized." Jack said flatly.

Tony bit his lip, sensing the other man's uncertainty. "You should at least mention it, Jack…she'll understand."

Jack sighed heavily.

"I'll see…" he finally decided before turning to leave the office. "Let me know what names you get."

"Will do."

* * *

Midway through the afternoon Tony had an epiphany. He reached for his phone and dialed the number for the Conference room.

"Dessler."

"Hey…when you're done briefing the analysts can I talk to you for a second."

"Yeah, sure."

Thirty minutes later she was seated on the couch in his office.

"When you spent those weeks at Division for field training…was there anyone there who uh…caught your interest?"

She looked at him curiously. "Jack hasn't found anyone he wants to take undercover."

Tony smirked a little. "What can I say, he knows what he wants."

She smiled and reached for a piece of paper before scribbling a name on it.

"Chase Edmunds." She said as she handed it to him. "You met him, remember? He had just transferred to the west coast…I know he mentioned wanting to take a position back east where his girlfriend lives, so I don't know if he'll be available but he'd be worth a shot…"

"You're the best." He declared as he made her way towards the door. She grinned.

"You can make it up to me later…"

* * *

They were dozing on the couch after dinner, her feet in his lap and her head propped up against a pillow. They were watching some show and it was complete and utter garbage but Tony didn't mind so much. His day had been one of the busiest he'd had in a long time. Not necessary stressful in the life-threatening sense of the word, but busy. First he'd spent the hour after he'd spoken with Michelle trying to track down Chase Edmunds. He'd then spent forty minutes on the phone with Ryan trying to convince him that it was in their best interest to fly the guy out from Washington for a meeting. And finally he'd had an extensive meeting with Jack going over the latest Intel on the Salazars, (courtesy of Gael and Chloe), and then explaining the prospective meeting with the Rookie Field Operative. It wasn't until he mentioned that Michelle had spent time with him at Division and had recommended him specifically that Jack decided it was worth a shot.

When they finally made it home, takeout in hand, it was almost 9-o-clock and both he and Michelle were beat.

So, naturally, as soon as he was starting to contemplate sleep his cell phone rang again. It was Ryan. Some paperwork had gone missing at Division and in an attempt to recover it some new analyst had caused part of the server to crash. He needed a hard copy.

"I'll be back…" Tony grumbled in frustration, pulling on his shoes, and leaning over the back of the couch to press a quick kiss behind Michelle's ear before heading out the door.

After an hour of flipping mindlessly between different shows and another twenty minutes of leafing through a magazine, Michelle gave up trying to come up with something worthwhile to do. Staring at the discarded pans soaking in the sink she sighed. Not wanting to go to bed alone, she reluctantly picked up a sponge and began to scrub...

* * *

She was halfway done when the front door opened and a few seconds later Tony appeared at her side.

"Hey,"

"Hey," he tossed his bag on one of the stools and began unbuttoning his collar for the second time that evening.

"You get everything sorted out?" she asked, amidst her mindless scrubbing.

"Uh huh…" he told her lazily as he pushed his sleeves passed his elbows and physically shifted her further along the sink to make room for himself.

"Leave it. I'm almost done…" she tried to argue.

He ignored her.

"Tony, I'm serious." She crinkled her brow and he laughed softly as he sunk his hands below the water.

As they worked, she gave a small yawn and lifted the back of her hand to cover her mouth and then push the hair out of her eyes. Tony casually slid one arm around her waist as he kissed the side of her neck before reaching both arms across her stomach.

"Tired?" he asked.

"Mhm…" she tilted her head back against his shoulder and allowed her eyes to shut as he swayed her softly back and forth.

His fingers gently manipulated the soft skin of her forearms and he smiled against her neck.

"You look nice today." He mumbled almost incoherently against her skin.

For him it had been one of those days where he just simply couldn't stop staring. Her eyes had bags underneath them, but her face still lit up every time he met her gaze; her smooth cheeks were slightly reddened from the heat of the day and he'd been wanting to nuzzle up against them since early that afternoon; her hair was pulled back loosely with pieces falling out all over the place and the stray curls spilled uncontrollably across her face, like even her clip had given up for the night. She was becoming more drained by the minute and he couldn't help but notice that amidst all the imperfections brought on by the long hours she could've have looked more perfect than at that very moment.

He squeezed her a little more firmly against him and breathed softly for a few seconds before returning to the dishes.

They chatted easily about what had transpired during Tony's late-night visit to CTU. Michelle listened intently as he detailed his account of how the analyst's mistake had forced an entire reboot of the system, which Ryan had requested his stick around for since computers weren't his field of expertise and 'apparently these analysts don't even know what the hell they're doing anymore'.

"Anyway, it's done now…" Tony said with a sigh of relief, drying the last pot Michelle had handed to him. "Chappelle wanted me to stay in case the night shift screwed it up again but I just explained how lonely you get without me to keep you company."

Michelle rolled her eyes before splashing some of the soapy water against his shirt and laughing at his dumfounded expression.

"Did you mention something about how delusional you get when you're tired?" she teased.

He splashed her back, eliciting a squeal as she attempted to nail him again. When he responded by soaking her blouse she lunged for the tap and aimed it in his direction; resulting in a struggle for control. She managed a few squirts at him before he took possession away from her entirely and aimed the full force of the spray, drenching her from head to toe. Nothing to lose now, Michelle dove and managed to regain control for long enough to get him almost as good as he got her.

They both stood beside the sink, panting, laughing, dripping and trying not to shiver.

"I think we'd better get you out of those clothes before you get sick and I have to take care of you."

"It's nice to know you're so concerned with my health…" she countered sarcastically, tossing him a dishtowel to dry his face.

He laughed and reached for her hand.

"You could've at least used warm water." She told him stubbornly as he guided her towards him.

"Uh…I hate to break it to ya Michelle, but _you_ were the one who turned on the tap." He teased back and began undoing the buttons of her shirt and tossing it to the ground before running his hands vigorously over her goosebumps. He tilted his head to one side and studied her body appreciatively for a few seconds before leaning in to kiss her shoulder and neck.

She tried to maintain an air of indifference, but gave up when he nipped gently at the soft skin of her collarbone and threw her hands up in defeat; allowing them to land against his own shirt and get to work on the buttons.

"C'mon…" he kissed her lips once firmly and held on to her hand. "Shower…"

She nodded and started to follow him towards the stairs, when he stopped midway and turned around to scoop her into his arms.

"Tony!" she lambasted halfheartedly and her heart gave a little, unexpected flutter when he pushed a dripping curl out of her eyes…

* * *

A week after the system's reboot Tony received a phone call he hadn't been expecting.

"Tony it's me." Lisa's voice resonated quietly. A wave of panic washed over him at the tone and he felt his muscles tense in preparation for what she was about to say.

"What's wrong?" she never called him at work.

"I um…" she winced. "I have news…but you can't say a word to mom or dad or even Amy because she'll squeal and he doesn't want…"

"What the hell's going on?"

"Rick's back."

His whole body tensed and every wick of moisture on his skin ran cold. His stomach tightened and he rested his forehead in his free hand.

"Tony…"

"I heard you." He growled. He didn't know how to respond to that. Bitter? Angry? Or even…happy?

"When?"

"He called me last night. He just landed in New York."

"How is he?"

She sighed. "He sounds fine…I guess…but I mean with him you never really know…"

"Damnit." Tony cursed softly, shaking his head in disbelief. "Is it still…?"

"The CIA partially declassified it…meaning he's allowed to tell people he still exists but nothing about what happened. God, I don't even know if he's in one piece…I can't believe it's been…"

"Four years…" _Almost to the day he left._

"Does he know what he's doing yet?"

"No. He didn't say much…he's on leave indefinitely…he kept asking about you…"

"What'd you say…?"

"Just…told him about Michelle…how you were still in LA…he wants to _see_ _you_."

"Well did you tell him that I really don't give a -"

"The least you can do is talk to him!"

"And I don't plan on doing that."

"Tony…"

"He takes no responsibility for anyone but himself…He thought he could just pick up and leave and all his mistakes would disappear… You saw what it did to everyone…mom stayed in bed for a month…Amy had to go to that damn psychologist she was so depressed, and you…"

Tony sighed heavily.

"People change in four years. You could at least give him a chance."

"Somehow I doubt that'll be happening…"

"Well the way I see it, you don't have a choice because he's flying into LA tomorrow and I highly doubt it'll take him long to find you once he gets there…"

"And I'm sure I have you to thank for that..."

"He doesn't need my help to find you!"

There was an awkward silence.

"Anyway, I'm going. Make sure you tell Michelle."

The phone clicked before Tony could respond.

* * *

"These are the debriefings from Field Ops." Michelle stated crisply as she stepped into Tony's office later that afternoon. "Gael's forwarding them to Division right now. How's the status report coming?"

"Huh?" he glanced up as though just realizing she'd entered the room. He sighed. "Sorry…what'd you say?"

"Debriefings." She tossed the file onto his desk and shot him a curious look. "How's the status report going?"

"Done." He sighed again and leaned back in his chair.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah…are you almost ready to go?"

She nodded, the anxiety present on her face. "Fifteen minutes…?"

" 'Kay…" he clawed at his cheek before meeting her eyes. "We need to talk…"

Her brow contracted, deducing there was obviously something he wasn't telling her.

"What's wrong?" she reached out to touch his hand gently. She'd never seen him this uncomfortable.

He eased slightly when she made contact. "I uh…I just got off the phone with Lisa…"

"Is everything alright?" her eyes widened slightly with concern. Lisa, Tony's middle sister, had moved to Boston a little under two years before thanks to an abusive relationship with a long time boyfriend. She knew he still worried about her (all three of his sisters, really) constantly.

"Nah, she's fine. But uh…do you remember when I told you about…" he took a deep breath. "About Rick?"

She felt a chill creep up the back of her neck. Of course she remembered. It wasn't a conversation she was likely to forget.

"Yeah…"

Tony scratched the back of his neck awkwardly and focused on the stack of papers in front of him, avoiding her eyes.

"He's back."

They'd had this conversation about three months into their relationship. She'd been instructed to pull something out of one of his desk drawers and had stumbled upon a small stack of old pictures. He couldn't have been much more than twenty in them, Rachel was still in high school, Lisa looked ten or eleven and Amy may as well have been a baby. She admired the picture with amusement, taking notice of the fifth, unknown figure.

_She tossed the USB drive he'd asked for on the coffee table before sinking down beside him on the couch._

_"Nice picture…" she teased, making a point to examine the attire of the girls, (particularly Rachel who was obviously at the height of fashion at the time) and his hair, which was significantly longer._

_He snatched it out of her hand instinctively, almost a little too aggressively, before allowing a smile to form on his face._

_"It was a long time ago…" he defended pointlessly and she laughed, leaning in for further examination._

_"Who's that?" she pointed to the fifth individual, a boy slightly shorter than Lisa with an unmistakable resemblance to Tony. "Cousin?" she ventured a guess._

_He tensed and shook his head, eyes fixated on the picture, silently cursing himself for forgetting he'd shoved the entire stack in the drawer._

_She frowned, noting his discomfort._

_"He's uh…" Tony leaned over the coffee table and clawed at the side of his face as he considered how to explain the situation._

_"My brother…Rick."_

_She stared at him in surprise. "You have a brother?" he'd been speaking relatively consistently of his sisters for the past three months, but he'd never once mentioned a brother. Fearing the unthinkable had happened, she said nothing._

_Tony finally snapped out of his trance. "He's alive." He told her flatly. "He's just not around anymore."_

_She definitely felt the disdain in his voice as he spoke._

_"He left about three years ago. He's doing some stuff for the CIA and isn't allowed to talk to anyone and couldn't tell anyone he was leaving… One night he just was gone and no one knew anything. They didn't know if someone he'd been trailing had finally gotten to him and just got rid of the body…but the facts didn't add up…and last year he e-mailed me from an encrypted server to say he was alive and he didn't know if he'd be back and not to say anything."_

_"Oh my god…" she stared in disbelief._

_Tony nodded slowly. "Anyway, the operation is classified…it has every tag on it you could possibly imagine and I think three people in the entire system had the clearance for it. That's why I didn't tell you. I'm sorry…"_

_"No…" she nodded in agreement. "Of course…I'm just…wow."_

_He sighed heavily. "I should've said something instead of leaving you to find out on your own…I wasn't trying to lie intentionally or anything, it just…"_

_"Honey, don't worry about it." She assured him easily. "It doesn't matter."_

_"Thing is…when he left we weren't exactly on the best of terms… I don't think he's planning on coming back at all…even if he survives whatever the hell they're doing out there."_

_"How come?"_

_"A week before they asked him to go he found out his…he got this girl he was seeing pregnant. He only told Rachel and Lisa and me…And then he jumped at the opportunity to bail. He's not exactly the most committed…he screws around a lot…I thought he'd grow out of it after college but it never happened. Anyway, he got her pregnant and they got in some big fight so when he got the opportunity to leave he took it. And then when he told me I accused him of basically running away…we argued…he left and that was it."_

_Michelle swallowed hard, attempting to process all of this._

_"Your parents never…"_

_"They just assumed he's dead…they never had a funeral or anything because I think they kept hoping they were wrong but… My mom and Amy just about lost it when he disappeared so they avoid talking about it."_

_"Were you close? I mean…before everything…"_

_"Yeah…I guess so." he nodded softly. "We stuck together…and then he went to college and I was working at DOD, so I wasn't around as much and he just kept getting worse. I didn't know what to do half the time – I was just relieved he'd still tell me stuff so I could attempt to keep an eye on him. After college he joined the Marines, went abroad a few times with Special Forces and then he left."_

_"So he's how old now?"_

_"Twenty-six this year. He and Lisa are eleven months apart and they drove each other insane…if they weren't related I don't think she'd be able to stand him…"_

_"So she knows?"_

_He bit his lip awkwardly. "Yeah I uh…I screwed up and told her last Christmas…She keeps bugging me to tell everyone else but…y'know… Classified."_

_After that they sat in a stone cold silence for god only knew how long. Michelle wasn't sure what to say and Tony just didn't seem to want to say anything. He stared at his hands for what seemed like an eternity before Michelle suggested a movie. He obliged willingly._

Tony had never brought up his brother again. Not when she met his parents ("I always felt bad for Tony…being surrounded by girls" his dad had said quite cheerfully), not when they were sending out wedding invitations, Christmas shopping…whatever. Rick Almeida was introduced to her once and from then on he was merely a ghost hanging over his brother's head. Until now…

"Are you okay?" she asked gently, her fingers pressing firm circles against the back of his hand.

"He's coming to see me...and I dunno…" he sighed in defeat. "I don't know what he expects me to say to him."

"He's your brother, Tony. No matter what he did or how he acted it was just a fight…it can't be that bad."

"I know…"

"You're just stubborn." She teased lightly.

He smiled a little. "Yeah, I guess."

Her hand had made its way along the inside of his wrist and up his forearm. She looked at him seriously "You may not have agreed with the decision he made but it doesn't concern you. He's an adult. You can't let it come between you."

"I know…at the time I just kept thinking if anyone had done that to one of the girl's I'd have killed 'em with my bare hands."

She smiled and brushed her thumb across his cheek.

"There's two sides to every story."

"Yeah…you're right," though he couldn't imagine that changing much. He squeezed her hand back and waited a minute before speaking again "Listen um…Lisa said he's coming to LA tomorrow so…"

"So I'll be my charming self." She smiled reassuringly.

He chuckled softly and after a few minutes she leaned in a kissed the corner of his mouth.

"I need to finish up the logs. Are you gonna be alright?"

He nodded slowly. "Yeah…I'll be fine."

* * *

They were sitting on the couch after work the next night and he could tell Michelle was nervous. She was fidgeting, something he found slightly amusing but knew she never did unless she was trying to keep herself incessantly busy. To be honest, he was nervous too but he wasn't planning on letting that show… he just didn't want to admit that Rick's reappearance could have such an affect on him.

"Do you think he'll call first?" Michelle ventured.

Tony shook his head and said simply "No."

As if on cue the doorbell rang.

Tony bit his lip as Michelle looked at him expectantly, wondering if he might need a little push into the hallway. When all was said and done he was still Tony's brother and she'd realized in that last day that he'd missed him a hell of a lot more than he'd ever let on before.

She didn't need to say anything. He wordlessly rose and made his way slowly for the door. She followed a few paces behind, lingering in the alcove between the kitchen and the hallway and feeling her own nerves worsen as her stomach twisted uncomfortably. She smoothed her skirt and pushed her hair behind her ears as she prepared to meet the reclusive Rick Almeida…

**A/N: **_For more details on the "family tree" I've created check out chapter 3 of 'You and Me' : )._


	14. Familiy Ties

**A/N: **_Hey guys! I'm very sorry for taking so long to get this next chapter up. My head just really wasn't in it and I hate forcing myself to write. I'm still not entirely happy with this but hopefully you'll enjoy it anyway. : ) I'm not planning on taking too long for the next chapter but as I'm sure you know, sometimes life just gets in the way. _

_Thanks very much to those who continue to read, and those who review. It's what keeps me writing! _

Chapter 14 – Family Ties

Tony had to take a deep breath before he pulled open the door. For a few seconds they just stared at each other, Tony and his brother. Rick's t-shirt and jeans were a little loose on him now and his muscles were more defined.

"Hey." Rick bit his lip and lowered his dark eyes almost as though he were ashamed. His hand moved to rub the back of his neck awkwardly.

"Hey." Tony's voice hardened and he tensed. Rick stood a good three inches taller than he did, but there was no disputing who was the more intimidating of the two in that moment.

"Look I'm sorry to just show up like this but…"

"Lisa told me you were coming."

"Oh good…" he seemed relieved.

"That's why you called her in the first place, right?"

Rick's eyes lowered again.

"I just wanted to talk, Tony. Honestly." he finally blurted out.

Tony nodded briefly and pulled him in for a gruff hug that was really not much more than a slap on the back.

"Yeah, alright." He jumbled out. "I'm glad you're okay."

Michelle's nerves had subsided slightly when she realized they (meaning Tony) weren't going to attempt a shouting match in front of the entire neighborhood…but it was then it occurred to her it was _her turn_ to meet her estranged brother-in-law. She honestly didn't know what to expect.

She took a step forward as both men stepped inside.

"Rick, this is Michelle." Tony declared and reached for her, as if indicating for her to come closer. She took a few steps towards them and smiled.

"Nice to meet you." Rick stated quietly as they shook hands. She smiled and shook back.

"You too."

"You hungry?" Tony asked him as he headed towards the kitchen. Rick shrugged his shoulders indifferently.

"Well I'm starving…" Michelle declared, hoping to ease a little bit of the tension. "And you know I'm incapable of feeding myself."

Tony laughed and nodded.

"In that case I mean…I wouldn't say no to a pizza or something…" Rick chimed in.

Tony shook his head softly in amusement and reached for the phone.

* * *

"Did you guys meet at work?" Rick blurted out in between bites as they sat down at the kitchen counter.

"Yeah…" It occurred to Tony in that moment Rick didn't even know about Nina or Jack or anything and it made him slightly bitterer about his leaving. When everything had gone down he could've used his brother.

Rick nodded and then said solemnly. "I'm sorry I missed your wedding."

Tony laughed hollowly. "I would've never expected you to show up."

Michelle raised an eyebrow at Tony from across the table and nudged his foot slightly. He caught her drift and added in:

"It wasn't a big thing anyway…we didn't really want it to be."

"Still…" Rick rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably again, a habit he most certainly picked up from his brother. "I would've been there."

"Doesn't matter…"

After a few seconds Rick added in quietly, hoping to break the tension:

"I guess I owe you a present or something."

Michelle smiled amiably. "Don't worry about it."

"No…trust me…I'll come up with something good…" he winked at her. "I have excellent taste. Promise."

They ate and drank silently, except for Rick commenting briefly on how much he'd missed beer and pizza. A cell phone rang a few minutes later and they all glanced at each other.

"Mine…" Michelle jumped up, recognizing the ring and left the room.

"So what now?" Tony asked, eyebrows raised.

"You mean job wise?"

"Do you have something lined up?"

"No…not yet. I've had a few offers but it's all desk stuff…nothing exciting."

"What are ya gonna do?"

Rick shrugged. "Shop around I guess. I have some contacts in DC and at Langley. I'll see if they know of anything. I'm good as long as it's field work…You know me and suits."

"Y'know, it wouldn't kill ya to take a breather from all that stuff for a few months." The thing that was really on Tony's mind was that at this rate, it might kill him not to.

"Yeah, I'd rather drink poison." Rick said it so innocuously it made Tony chuckle briefly. Rick smiled a little in relief.

"You lucked out with Michelle…" he commented, when he knew she was still busy in the other room. "I dunno how _you_ managed that."

Tony chuckled. "Sometimes I wonder the same thing."

"It's good you're happy…"

"But it's not what you want?"

"Gimme a break, Tony. It wasn't what you wanted when you were my age either…"

"And yet I still managed not to turn out like you."

"You're never gonna let me live this down, are you?"

Tony shook his head slowly. "I'll just never understand how you could walk away from something like that…how you could cheat on these girls time after time and when it finally catches up with you just…do nothing…it was your responsibility."

"First of all I wasn't cheating… she wasn't my girlfriend…and can you honestly imagine me with a kid? Honestly?" Rick raised his eyebrows.

"After college I was out of the country six months out of every year…I was constantly looking over my shoulder when I came back from the Middle East because Singh's people were still after me…how would it have been responsible to put a baby and Charlotte in the middle of that?"

"You coulda slowed down a bit…"

"Not in this lifetime." Rick uttered under his breath. Noting the look his brother shot him Rick then added: "And there's no way in hell you would've slowed down at twenty-two either…"

"If I got some girl I was - "

"Fucking?" Rick suggested sarcastically, eyebrows raised. "'Cause that's all it was, buddy."

Tony scowled.

"I would've slowed down."

"I'm not you."

"That's for sure."

"We had an understanding…"

"You had a lot of 'understandings'…"

"And y'know what? It's better that way…"

"You're a few years from thirty and you've never had a serious relationship."

"And that works for me. No one asks questions…no one gets hurt."

Tony wanted to argue that he was an idiot if he thought that was true…that there was no way every girl he'd ever been with hadn't expected more than what he was willing to give them. Tony had had more than a few flings in his lifetime but never what Rick did. Picking up girls at bars three or four nights of a week had less to do with them not getting hurt and more to do with him not wanting anything tying him down.

"Have you called Charlotte yet?"

"I've been back for a day…"

"Are you gonna call her?"

"Of course I'm gonna call her…She just wasn't first on my list…I haven't even talked to mom and dad yet."

"Yeah uh…." Tony rubbed the side of his face thoughtfully. "Why don't you leave them to me..."

"You sure?"

"Yeah. Otherwise you may be wishing you'd taken the poison."

"Thanks, I owe you one."

"Don't mention it." Tony mumbled, his eyes focused on his hands now.

Michelle entered the room at that instant and extended her phone to Tony. It was obvious the tension from earlier had returned.

"Jack wants to talk to you." She sighed and Tony grabbed the phone and excused himself. Michelle slumped back into her chair beside Rick.

"So you tolerate my brother 24 hours a day, seven days a week?"

She laughed sweetly and he relaxed a little. "Well when you put it that way, it certainly seems like quite an accomplishment."

Rick smiled at her.

"So, what are your plans now?"

He hesitated. "I think I'm gonna stay in LA for a while…My parents…I mean I'll see them and everything but I can't be there permanently. And until I find a job LA just…"

Michelle nodded sympathetically.

"I want to fix this with him. That's why I came."

"He just needs some time..."

As if to prove Michelle's point, when Tony emerged a few minutes later he said nothing of what Jack had wanted but simply asked Rick how long he was in town for.

"I haven't decided yet." Rick admitted warily.

"Where are you staying?"

"Dunno yet… I figured I'd just…"

"You might as well stay here then." Tony mumbled innocuously as he grabbed the empty bottles from the table. Rick looked at Michelle who nodded her encouragement. They needed to bond again.

"You sure?"

"Yeah." Tony stated calmly. "Might as well…"

"Okay um…great, thanks."

* * *

Later that night Rick was sitting on the bed of the spare rooms; his cell phone resting in his hand. He toyed with it for a few minutes, his thumb tracing the outline before he flipped it open. He scrolled through the phonebook looking for the number he wanted.

The voice on the other end of the line sounded quiet, monotonous when she answered.

She stated emotionlessly. "I thought you were dead."

"I was abroad…"

"For four years?"

"Yeah I know…listen I'm really sorry about - "

"Don't apologize to me." She spat bitterly. "I didn't want you around then and I still don't want you around now."

"C'mon Charlotte, I just wanted to see how you were doing…I wanted to see…"

"You wanted to know if I kept the baby?" she snapped. "Fuck you. You gave up the right to know that when you left without a word."

"I _couldn't_ say anything and you…"

"I didn't want you there? Convenient, eh? That I told you exactly what you wanted to hear? You sure know how to take an opportunity and run with it."

"Charlotte I'm sorry."

"Yeah me too…but I'm seeing someone now. An _actual _relationship…and you haven't changed a bit… You think you can make up for everything you did by calling me now? You just wanted sex…and I gave you that and so did what's-her-face and that goddamn TA of yours and…" he could hear the emotion rising her voice and felt a strong pang of guilt hit him in the pit of his stomach.

"So don't try to now act like it was something other than what it was." She stated angrily and then paused for a moment to let the words sink in.

"It was a boy…if you really were interested. He got adopted by some couple in Naperville. It was a closed adoption so I have no idea where he is now or what his name is or anything."

"Charlotte I…"

"Don't call me again."

The dial tone resonated in his ear and he sat there on the bed for a long time afterwards.

* * *

"How is he?" Michelle asked from her position on the bed. Her legs were bent at the knee and she was applying moisturizer to them. Tony shrugged.

"Fine. He keeps saying he'll start figuring out job stuff first thing in the morning but I uh…I kinda said he can stay here for a while and just…relax if that's…?"

"Of course. He's your brother."

"I think he just needs some time away from it all."

"I agree. He needs to relax."

Tony sighed as he undressed slowly and slipped into the bed beside her, leaning in and pressing a chaste kiss against the crook of her neck. She smiled when his stubble tickled her slightly. He lingered for a moment against her skin, breathing deeply.

"I just don't get it." He said when he pulled away, playing with her fingers now. "I don't get why he does it…"

"Has he said anything about what happened when he was away?"

Tony shook his head. "Not yet. He's different though…I dunno if maybe he's just nervous or something but he used to be a lot more…arrogant"

"Maybe he's just grown up; mellowed out a little?"

"Or maybe something happened when he was away." It was a stupid thing to say. Of course something had happened. Several things had probably happened and he couldn't imagine many scenarios that would've been positive where Rick had been.

"It's good he's here, honey." She twisted to face him on the bed and assured him gently. "It's good for him."

Tony nodded and leaned back against his pillow, where he too was consumed by his thoughts for the rest of the night.

* * *

"You don't have work today?" Rick asked as he emerged sleepily, just before 9, with massive bags under his eyes. Michelle was sitting with her feet propped up on the coffee table sipping her mug of coffee. Rick had been with them for two day; two, very silent, very sleepless days.

She shook her head. "This is my day off. I just lucked out it was on a Friday."

"You don't uh…get days off with Tony?" he asked carefully as he sat down beside her on the couch. Michelle seized the opportunity.

"Every few weeks usually. As long as we can get Division to sign off on it and there's someone to cover for us and we're both around in case we're needed."

Rick smiled a little. "No spontaneous weekend getaways?"

Michelle laughed. "Not quite. I don't think we've been away together since our honeymoon."

Rick nodded thoughtfully.

"Well uh…in that case…" he shifted his jaw and studied her carefully. "If you don't have any real plans for the day do ya think you could…help me out?"

She turned to look at him face on.

"What'd you have in mind?"

"How are those ones?" Michelle called from her seat outside the dressing rooms. Rick emerged cautiously, feeling a little bit like he was on display as he watched the heads of every woman in the room turn to study him nonchalantly. His cheeks reddened and Michelle suppressed a laugh. There was absolutely no denying that by _anyone's _definition, Rick was hot.

"Can you just…" he winced. "Can you come here instead?"

She grinned and gave a quick glance around the room. Noting all the stares he'd been garnering quickly turned in the opposite direction. She uncrossed her legs and stepped into the doorway of the dressing room as he examined himself in the mirror skeptically.

"I still dunno what was wrong with the first four pairs you grabbed." He scoffed a little and she grinned.

"They were too big. All of them."

"I know what size I am."

"Were…" she reminded him.

He shrugged. "So I dropped a few pounds. They'll come back when I start eating like a normal person again."

He raised his faded white t-shirt that had holes in it to examine the waist, inadvertently revealing an insanely defined stomach. Michelle'd decided after the third pair of jeans that, too big or not, they certainly hadn't looked horrible on him.

However, the endearing thing about him was Rick didn't seem to know or care that his textbook, perfectly proportioned face and chiseled jaw, were appreciated by every female they passed over the age of 16. He was quite happy in is worn jeans, scuffed up shoes and holey white t-shirts. There was a scruffy, laid-back attitude to him that was attractive. It made Michelle wonder why he knowingly went out to pick up girls with such a confidence. Perhaps the ego showed up after a few drinks…or maybe he was just on his best behavior for her.

"Well until then," Michelle jumped in. "You'll have to live with being a couple of sizes smaller…at least these ones fit."

He released the shirt and stared at himself blankly.

"What do you think?" she probed.

"Good enough." He decided. "I can't try on any more jeans…or shirts…or jackets..."

"It's only been three hours." She laughed.

"Yeah and that's two hours too long for me. I should probably get a suit or something but I uh…I'll probably hold off on that for a bit." He gave her a pained expression and she nodded as they exited the dressing rooms.

"I _really _appreciate this, Michelle. I hate shopping by myself."

"I'm happy to help." She smacked him gently on the arm. "Alright, let's get outta here…"

Ten minutes later they exited the store with the entire morning's worth of purchases in their hands.

"How about you?" he queried as they stepped onto the escalator. "Because I will happily go anywhere you want as a thank you."

Michelle laughed. "I have enough clothes as it is…but I appreciate the offer."

He grinned. "Well then, you wanna grab lunch?"

"Sure…" she led him through the mall and into a restaurant. Once their bags were stowed safely under their chairs and they each had a drink he stared at her seriously from across the table.

"So…" he began, eyebrows raised.

She mimicked his expression. "So…"

"So you've probably been told the entire story about what happened before I left and you've yet to ask me a single question about it."

"It seemed a little personal."

"Well it's not. I mean…It's cool if you want to…"

"If you want to talk about it… I'm willing to listen."

Rick sighed heavily. "I know you heard Tony's version…and I'm not saying he's not right about a lot of it but…it wasn't that black and white. I really wasn't trying to be a huge jerk I just… I…y'know…with different people. And uh…it's always been that way with me. Before it was just because I didn't want anything serious and then it became more of me not being able to afford to have anything serious…"

Michelle listened thoughtfully.

"I was always leaving... They had me doing all kinds of stuff all over the world and um…it just wouldn't have made sense. You know how complicated relationships are and my job is complicated enough without all that…extra stuff."

"Relationships are complicated." She stated easily. "But that doesn't mean you can't get involved with someone."

He nodded softly. "And I've yet to meet the person who can make me think complicating my life further is worth it. So, until I do this works for me."

"So what happened with Charlotte?" Michelle probed gently.

He hesitated.

"I'm sorry I didn't mean…"

He took a deep breath. "I've known Charlotte since college and we usually…saw each other a few times a month. I mean… It was just an arrangement we had. No strings…that kind of thing…and then she called me one day and told me she was pregnant. I freaked out." He laughed hollowly. "I _really_ freaked out. I asked her if she was sure it was mine…She got really mad because apparently that meant I was calling her a whore…she said I wasn't thinking about anyone but myself and I never had…told me she didn't want me involved because the fact that we weren't 'serious' meant I gave up my right to have any sort of say in the decision making."

"She was scared too." Michelle told him quietly.

Rick nodded. "And I was 22 and _was _only thinking about myself. I was an ass…I'm not denying that…but I saw her for sex and only sex and she knew that. I didn't want to be manipulated into anything…" he wet his lips slightly with his tongue and averted Michelle's gaze. "So, the next day my boss tells me I have a meeting with the Deputy Director of the CIA. They want me on a plane to Berlin in four days and I'm not to tell anyone…I'll get further instructions once I arrive."

He paused to take a long sip of his drink.

"I was killing myself trying to get noticed at work…I was top of my class at Quantico…in the Marines…they sent me away on a few covert ops…so when the Deputy Director of the CIA asks you to do something you're sure as hell gonna do it…it would've taken a lot for me to say no and Charlotte wanted nothing to do with me. I wasn't waiting around for her to make up her mind, so I went to Berlin."

Michelle still hadn't said a word, so he continued.

"I'm not the most responsible guy in the world…but… When it comes to work…it's different…"

Her phone rang, cutting him off.

"Sorry…" she dug it out of her bag and snapped it open.

"Dessler."

"Remind me again why you got Friday off…" Tony began softly. She laughed lightly.

"Because I think you like me a little bit or something." She glanced at Rick and mouthed 'Tony'. He smiled slightly.

Tony sighed exaggeratedly. "I guess it must be something like that." He leaned back in his chair, grateful for the break.

"Where are you?"

"The mall."

"Michelle…" he groaned teasingly. She wasn't a shopaholic by any stretch of the imagination but he teased her about it anyway.

"Not for me." She protested. "For Rick. He needed clothes."

That got Tony's attention. He sat up abruptly.

"You went shopping with Rick?"

"Yeah…we're having lunch now…"

"You spent the entire morning together?"

"It was fun." She stated easily. "More fun than work without me I'm sure."

He smiled. "Yeah well, you seem to be the common denominator don't you?"

She grinned. "Well…obviously."

"Alright well uh…I just wanted to see if you were missing me like crazy but I guess not…" she laughed. "So I'm gonna get back to work, I'll see you tonight, sweetheart."

"What time are you getting out of there?"

"Six…if there is a god…"

"Then I'll see you around six."

When the bill came, Rick insisted on paying.

"My treat." He pulled the piece of paper out of Michelle's hand.

"I'll split it with you." She argued. He rolled his eyes.

"You got me through shopping in one piece…at least let me buy you lunch."

Michelle sighed and relented.

"Thanks."

* * *

"So what's for dinner?" Rick asked as Michelle pulled a bottle of water out of the kitchen later that night. She stared at him, slightly amused.

"I don't cook."

Rick turned to face her. "Can't or don't?"

"Can't. Tony cooks…and we order in."

He laughed and started opening cupboards.

"What do you feel like?"

"You're making dinner?" she raised her eyebrows at him.

He grinned. "Sure…I mean it won't be anything spectacular but uh…I can hold my own. So what do you feel like?"

"Whatever you feel like making."

He opened the fridge and stared for a few seconds before deciding he was making fajitas and raiding the cupboards for the appropriate cookware. Michelle directed him to the barbeque (something he had to figure out how to turn on himself) and by the time Tony stumbled in the door, dinner was well in progress.

"Hey…" Michelle stepped into the hallway as he hung his jacket in the cupboard. "How was CTU?"

He shrugged. "We had to coordinate with Division and help them bring in former employee they suspected of selling information on the black market. Other than that…just long…"

He sighed heavily. He'd been up since four-thirty that morning and was utterly exhausted.

"Well good news…" Michelle declared as she led him into the family room. "Rick's making dinner so you can relax tonight."

Tony slumped down on the couch and laughed softly. "You two seem to be getting on pretty well."

She slipped down beside him. "We are." she stated softly as she tilted her head against his chest. His fingers slipped into her hair and kissed the top of her head.

"Thanks for doing that today."

Michelle smiled to herself and said nothing. His arm moved around her waist and he tipped her head back slightly so she could see his face.

"I missed you, though." He told her gently before kissing the corner of her mouth. She grinned and kissed him back just as the patio door opened.

"Michelle, the chicken's ready…." He trailed off slightly when he saw his brother.

"Hey, how was work?"

Tony shrugged as they both rose from the couch. "It was alright…I'm starved…" he clapped Rick on the shoulder as they moved into the kitchen. "What'd you make…?"

* * *

"So you had a good day?" Tony ventured carefully as he flipped on the TV after dinner. There was a Cubs' game on and Michelle was in the shower.

"Yeah I did." He sighed heavily. "Michelle's awesome."

Tony smirked a little and said nothing.

"Did you call mom and dad?" Rick asked a minute later, feeling slightly queasy now.

Tony shook his head. "Today was hectic…I'll do it tomorrow."

"That's what you've said since I got here…"

"Yeah, and I thought you'd appreciate the fact that you weren't being hounded by mom for a bit."

Rick shrugged. "I figured I might as well rip off the band aid…they don't know about…?"

"Of course not. They don't know and neither does Amy."

"Have you talked to Rach?"

"I mentioned you were back…she wants you to visit her in Boston."

"She's in _Boston_?"

"Yeah…for a few years. Work moved her there. She loves it."

Rick processed this quietly to himself.

"What about Lise? I thought she'd be in LA still with…"

"Matt was hitting her. Took it too far one night and she called me…she's living with Rachel while she's at law school."

"I hated that guy from day one… Slimy, little weasel…" Rick scowled. "Did you beat the crap out of him?"

"Wanted to…" Tony sighed. "She's fine though…it was a couple of years ago."

"Amy's doing her Master's?"

"Uh huh…Poli Sci."

"Damn…" he shook his head a little. "It seems like the only thing that hasn't changed is that the Cubs are still losing."

Tony laughed. "Pretty much." He sighed heavily. "Everyone missed you…they just tried not to talk about it a lot…"

Rick nodded. "I know…I didn't want to leave the way I did…but the truth is there's a reason I told you…and not just 'cause I knew you understood how classified it needed to be kept…" he fumbled awkwardly with the tattered end of his ripped shirt. "I just…knew you had my back…no matter what I did...no matter how mad you were at the time."

Tony shifted his eyes to study him for a moment and kinked his jaw to one side before speaking.

"Yeah well… that hasn't changed either." He declared, before turning back to the TV.


	15. The Times, They Are a Changin'

Chapter 15 – The Times, They are a Changin'

"So, we're alone?" Tony raised his eyebrows suggestively and Michelle felt a blush creep up the back of her neck.

"Surprised?" she asked, making a particular point not to catch his drift.

"No." he stated calmly. "Just stating the obvious." She had just kicked off her shoes and was making her way towards the stairs when she felt an arm wrap around her waist, pulling her back against his body. She felt his warm breath in her hair before it moved down the side of her face, hovering at her ear and then heating the crook of her neck before he clamped down gently on it with his teeth. Her eyes closed synchronously when he did this and she interlaced her fingers through his and leaned back against his shoulder.

"Tony…" she began breathlessly.

"Mhm…" she felt the words against her neck and wavered slightly.

"We should wait until tonight." She managed.

He said nothing in response, but his hand slipped beneath her blouse and his lips moved further down her shoulder. She'd undone a couple of buttons in the car and he'd been feeling the need to get his hands on her ever since.

"Tony!" she lambasted pointlessly. As she broke away quickly and turned around to protest his lips sealed around hers and their bodies melded together. She didn't even realize where they were until the back of her legs bumped into the couch and she toppled onto it with her arms still around his neck

He crawled on top of her, pushing her back against the cushions as his mouth retained contact with some part of her skin. She whimpered softly without meaning to when his hands moved from her blouse to the bottom of her skirt and slid gently up the inside of her leg. Her own hands had moved beneath his shirt and her nails raked gently into his back…cursing their clothes from getting in the way.

And naturally, at that moment the front door slammed shut and Rick walked briskly into the living room. They both froze at the sound, like deer caught in the headlights.

"Oh shit um…" Rick ran his fingers through his hair awkwardly and quickly turned to the side. "Sorry…guys…I had um…yeah…" he fumbled and moved quickly into the kitchen, calling "Sorry" over his shoulder several times.

Tony hung his head dejectedly before rolling off the couch and untwisting his shirt. Michelle followed suit, her hair falling out of its ponytail and her cheeks still tinged pink both from embarrassment and excitement.

They both entered the kitchen, Michelle retying her hair and Tony's jaw cocked uncomfortably to one side. Rick had his head buried in the fridge as he guzzled a bottle of water. After a minute he turned around.

"Sorry…" he looked deeply apologetic and was now wishing he'd had enough common sense to turn around and go back outside than run into the kitchen to hide. Michelle looked slightly mortified and he felt bad. Namely since the only reason this had happened was because he'd been crashing at their place for the last month…and because he might've caught a good look at her bra.

"Don't worry about it." Michelle told him quietly, her cheeks turning slightly redder. "I'm gonna go grab a shower anyway…" she touched Tony gently on the arm before disappearing up the stairs.

Rick raised an eyebrow, feigning confusion as he glanced between his brother and Michelle's retreating back. "Aren't you gonna go with her?" he asked innocuously.

Tony smacked him affectionately across the back of the head and mumbled, "smart ass" under his breath. There was a slight smirk playing on the corners of his lips.

Rick laughed, relieved the tension had broken.

"I mean…next time you want me to make myself scarce…" Rick began. "Just lemme know."

"I'll do that." Tony reached into the fridge and pulled out water for himself as he muttered innocuously.

"I'm uh…I'm sorry I'm staying so long."

Tony turned around and faced his brother full-on.

"Don't be." He said sincerely. "I'd rather know you were here than wonder what the hell you'd gotten yourself into this time."

"I know but it's been a month…"

"Don't worry about it." Tony squeezed his shoulder firmly. "You'll be gone again before we know it."

Rick sighed heavily. "I really appreciate this."

"I know."

* * *

"Where's Tony?" Michelle asked as she emerged in flannel pants. Her hair was still dripping from the shower.

"He's putting gas in your car for tomorrow."

She smiled a little lopsidedly before sitting down beside Rick on the couch.

"What are you watching?"

"Sports reel…" he sighed heavily. "Cubs lost."

She hiccupped a laugh and he rolled his eyes slightly. "You haven't been converted yet?"

"I don't watch enough baseball to require converting." She stated easily.

Rick laughed appreciatively.

"I'm sorry about - "

"It's really not that big a deal…" she stared at him incredulously.

"I know…I just…I feel like this is proof I overstayed my wel - "

"Stop worrying so much." She assured him firmly. "We want you here…both of us…"

He smiled slightly and seemed to consider what he was about to say next.

"You have good taste by the way…" he bit his lip, hiding a smirk.

She raised her eyebrows. "What do you mean?"

He grinned and smacked her knee teasingly.

"I've always had a thing for black lace."

She stared at him wide eyed and felt the color returning to her cheeks.

He laughed loudly as she swatted him playfully on the arm.

"My turn to shower…" he declared and his leapt out of her reach and bolted for the stairs. She shook her head slowly.

"Stay up there if you know what's good for you." She warned menacingly. He winked and was gone.

* * *

Tony's hands slid languidly down her arms, following the descent of her shirt as it uncovered inch after inch and bare skin. She clamped down hard on his lower lip as he removed the shirt completely and her nimble fingers went to work on his own. His hands moved across her bare stomach, caressing it gently before slipping beneath her skirt and moving between her legs. She gasped hard and bucked her head back against the wall. By the time he was finished her lips had moved to his neck and his shirt had fallen to the floor…

They were both down to their underwear: him black boxers and her some midnight blue bra and panty set that only further emphasized her pale skin, dark hair and bright eyes. For a while longer they tumbled around on the bed together, taking their time removing the last few articles of clothing before she pushed him onto his back and started to work her way down his chest. He felt his muscles clench and gritted his teeth as the sweat started to emanate from his pores. His breathing turned labored when she hit her mark and his head fell back against the pillow…

They were at CTU. He was standing over her desk and conversations were being had. They argued a lot…over Jack. She would tell him something and he would go on the defensive. She got irritated by his constant presence, (or need to keep an eye on her) and he felt emasculated as a result. She told him off for not obeying the chain of command and he reminded her, resentfully, that whatever happened when they walked out of the office would be entirely different.

Next they ended up in a deserted hallway.

_"Tony, I appreciate your looking the other way on this, but you don't have to help me cover for Jack anymore." _She told him emphatically.

_"I'm not doing this for Jack." _He replied, conveying the meaning behind the words with the way his eyes lingered and held her gaze. _Obviously_ he was doing this for her, and only her. She couldn't possibly think otherwise…

They were back in the bedroom, but things were quiet. She was sleeping and he was trying to get his head to stop spinning long enough to get some sleep. He found himself kind of wishing she would wake up so they could start round two…it seemed like they never saw that much of each other anymore and when they'd had a day like they'd just had…with her spending so much time with Jack, he couldn't help but get a little territorial. He couldn't help but feel an irrefutable desire to leave his mark.

They were back at CTU again, and he was not feeling angry or frustrated or jealous anymore. He wanted to comfort her and he wanted it to be one of the things only _he_ could do for once. Jack was worried about his family, not her. On the other hand, she was all he'd been thinking about all day. He'd been thinking about putting this huge mess behind them so he could take her home and not think for a while.

_"…Ultimately, we're here to try to help people, right? I don't know anyone who does that better than you." _He told her gently and she seemed to feel better about the whole thing. So did he.

He was sweating hard and his breathing was ragged as he pounded out a steady rhythm and she moaned and groaned incessantly. Her nails dug painfully into his back and he winced slightly before biting down into her neck in retaliation. The sheets had fallen to the floor and she released him long enough to bring his hand to cover her mouth and mute the noises she was making. Now they had all the time in the world for this; now it was nothing but them, a bed, and sex. Nothing was making it awkward, nothing was making it uncomfortable; they as they were at that moment, worked.

Slowly, everything morphed back to CTU as he ran into one of the IT rooms to find Jack clutching his dead wife's body. He was still sweating, but for a much different reason this time. He'd just seen her taken away in handcuffs and realized not only was she a traitor and a murderer, but she had been screwing him…in more ways than one…

Back in bed she kissed him lightly, rousing him from sleep and mumbling something about having to get to work. Their shift started at eleven that night. His stomach churned as if he was having an out of body experience; knowing full well what the hours would uncover. His skin crawled when she slipped her tongue into his mouth and her hand wiggled its way beneath his boxers.

Tony launched himself upright, his breathing ragged and the sweat from the dream protruding from his pores, leaving him with slick skin and clammy palms. He felt nauseous and his stomach was clenched tightly as he pushed off the covers and tried to gulp in fresh air. His brow was dripping wet and he couldn't seem to get himself to push the vivid nightmare out of his head. He could still feel her all over him…

_What the hell was that? _

He hadn't had a dream about Nina in an eternity…well…in the last two years at least. In his disheveled state he started feeling a little panicky and reached a free hand across the mattress in desperate search of his companion.

His breathing started to level when he felt her perfectly cool and smooth skin by comparison. His fingers found their way into long, curly hair instead of the thin, short kind he had felt in his dream. For a few seconds he caressed it before pulling her towards him a little aggressively and pressing a kiss against her head.

"Mhm…" she groaned a little. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing…" he gasped, his heart rate still erratic. "Sorry…go back to sleep."

Too late. She was up.

Great, now he felt guilty. They didn't get a lot of sleep to begin with, and because of some stupid dream he had to go and ruin hers. It's not like he had reason to doubt she would be there when he woke up, but everything had felt so real he could've sworn it had just happened…

The thing was, it _had _happened. It had felt real because it had happened, every painstaking moment of it and he had relived everything he had felt through each and every second. He had lived through it and it had tormented him that someone he had spent hours and hours in bed with could end up being something so…

He and Jack had been going over a file that morning and Nina's name had been in it. That had to be why he'd had the dream. He wasn't subconsciously thinking about Nina all the time still…she'd just been forced into his thoughts yet again.

Michelle snuggled into his chest and he immediately felt like he was being suffocated. He tried to squirm away without her realizing. She snapped awake half a second later as a result.

"Are you okay?" she sat up completely and reached out a hand to feel his forehead. Her hand traveled down his body. "You're sweating like crazy…"

"I'm alright." He assured her in a raspy voice. "It's just too hot in here."

She frowned and pulled away a little.

"I'll get some water."

"No." he latched onto her wrist and pulled her back. "Go back to sleep. I'll get it myself."

She obeyed reluctantly and he exited the bedroom.

A few minutes later he was on his second 12oz glass when she emerged in the kitchen, her housecoat wrapped around her and her hair tumbling endearingly around her face. He felt a big wave of sickness wash over him at the sight. Sickness at how guilty he felt for thinking he could push her away by acting like a jerk. She knew him better than that.

"What happened?" she asked him softly, coming to stand beside him. With the water glass in hand she noticed him shaking and her brow furrowed with concern.

"Tony…" her voice grew stern. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." He brushed her off and downed the rest of the glass. "Bad dream…not a big deal."

The glass landed on the counter with a light clank before he went to fill it again.

"Do you want to tell me about it?" she volunteered.

He looked conflicted, and didn't answer.

"Was it about work?"

"Kinda." He muttered without thinking and immediately knew it had been a mistake.

She bit her lip, remembering she'd awoken to being pulled into his embrace.

"Was I in it?"

"No." he blurted out without thinking again.

His shaking hand put down the glass again and she crossed the room slowly and drew him into her arms. He sighed heavily into her hair, feeling suffocated again and tempted to pull away.

"Are you okay?"

"It was just a dream, Michelle" He mumbled flatly and she pulled back far enough to allow him a view of her raised eyebrows.

"I know, I just…"

He moved his arms and leaned back against the counter, breaking the contact slightly.

"Just go back to bed, alright? There's no reason for both of us to be zombies tomorrow…"

She looked slightly hurt but nodded and tucked her hair behind her ears, her gaze was lowered to the floor as she did this.

"Okay…fine." She met his eyes at the last possible second before disappearing back up the stairs.

The sound of footsteps on the stairs ten minutes later made Tony spin around again. He sighed heavily when he realized it wasn't Michelle.

"Hey…" Rick scratched the back of his head, his hair messy and disheveled. He yawned and squinted at the light from the kitchen. His runners were hanging in his left hand and he wore track pants and a grey t-shirt.

"Why are you up?"

Tony shrugged. "Couldn't sleep." He glanced at his brother's attire. "Are you going running?"

"Couldn't sleep either." Rick shrugged. "It clears my head."

Tony said nothing.

"Which, I'm guessing is what you could use right now…" Rick suggested with a raised eyebrow. "C'mon…get dressed…come with me…"

Tony laughed hollowly. "You'll kick my ass."

"Obviously." Rick snorted good naturedly. "But it's good…you'll wipe yourself out so you're to tired to think about anything…"

Tony hesitated and Rick slapped him on the back.

"C'mon…I'll go easy on ya…"

Tony rolled his eyes. "Alright…gimme a minute."

* * *

They ran for over half an hour before coming to a small playground. The sun was just beginning to rise and Tony was dripping with sweat. Rick, much to his chagrin, was barely breathing heavily.

"Someone's out of shape…" he teased, moving over to the monkey bars and preparing for a few chin-ups. "You need to workout more."

"I workout."

"_More_…" Rick emphasized. "Otherwise people will think you're getting old or something."

Tony groaned and slumped down on the bench.

"You said you'd go easy."

"That was easy."

"That was sprinting for thirty minutes."

Rick laughed and hoisted himself up without much effort. He had a good pace going and Tony mumbled something about a "showoff".

A few minutes later Rick joined him on the bench.

"So what's the deal?"

"Huh?"

"Are you normally up at 4:30 every morning?"

"It was just a…dream."

"Girl?"

Tony stared at him, obviously offended. "I'm married, genius."

"It's not like I asked if you're cheating on her…you said it was a dream…"

"And why do you assume it's about a girl?"

"Because I know you." Rick remarked flatly. "It's also the reason you told Michelle to leave you the hell alone right before I got down there."

Tony turned and stared at him.

"Saw her in the hall…" Rick explained easily. "Anyway who was it? That redhead you were dating when I left?"

"Hannah?"

Rick groaned. "Right…oh man she was so annoying…what the hell were you thinking with that one?"

Tony shrugged. "She was fun, she was pretty…"

"She was a self-righteous, instigator…"

"Hey…"

"She was. Every time she saw me I got a lecture…she had this holier-than-thou attitude that made me want to…" Rick tapered off, obviously miffed.

"Anyway, was it her?"

"No. Definitely not."

"Then…"

"Nina Myers." He waited patiently and Rick shook his head.

"No idea who that is…"

"Worked at CTU when Jack Bauer was the Director…" he paused. "You know…?"

"I know who Bauer is." Rick stated flatly. "I was in Germany for a few weeks every year…I heard about the Drazens. That's why I e-mailed you."

Tony sighed heavily. "They had this uh…thing when he was separated and then he went back to his wife and we started…dating."

"And…"

"And she was still in love with him…"

"Ouch."

"And was working for the Drazens and ended up murdering Jack's wife and kidnapping his daughter and…yeah. It was hell."

"Did he kill her?"

"No. She was arrested. And then a year and a half later we found out she'd sold the plans to CTU to a terrorist group from the Middle East so they could blow it up."

"Fuck." Rick shook his head. "Did they?"

Tony nodded uncomfortably. "We lost thirty people…it was rough…We spent the first hour afterwards running around trying to figure out who was still alive…"

"And…Michelle was working there then?" there was a hint of anxiousness in his voice that Tony rather appreciated. Rick and Michelle had definitely bonded over the last couple of weeks.

"Uh huh…for a little under a year."

"Jesus Christ. What happened to Myers?"

Tony bit his lip. "She had connections to one of the guys behind it. We cut a deal and she was pardoned and exiled to Africa. Which is why, I guess, she was on my mind..." He finished awkwardly. "An FBI agent spotted her and flagged one of the files. She was making contacts with a known Arms Dealer in Algeria."

"Why didn't they pick her up?"

"They couldn't confirm it was her…and even if they could've there was no proof she knew what he was. This guy they were tailing was known to dabble in biohazard weapons and he the top priority. "

"Well…is it possible it wasn't - ?"

"It was Nina." Tony cut him off. "It was Nina and she knew _exactly _what she was doing. And now I'm worried and Jack's worried that she's up to something and we lost our only chance stop her because of…"

Rick sighed heavily and leaned back against the bench.

"Sorry."

"Who saw the file?"

"Only Jack and me."

"Why didn't you tell Michelle?"

Tony looked at him exasperatedly. "Why do you think?"

"Well it's not like it's your fault…"

"And Michelle had enough Nina Myers talk to contend with before we even starting dating. She doesn't need it now. Trust me."

Rick shrugged. "I guess."

After a few seconds of nothing Rick spoke.

"This thing with Nina…was it…y'know…serious?" he ventured carefully. Tony understood the question. He wanted to know if he'd been in love with her. If only there were a simple answer to that.

"I think at the time…I kinda wanted it to be …" he shrugged innocuously. "Things changed."

Rick grinned a little. "I like Michelle."

Tony laughed. "I noticed…"

"No I mean it…out of everyone you ever dated she wins hands down…"

"Yeah well…that doesn't do her much justice all things considered."

Rick smiled.

"Hey uh listen, I was thinking if you needed any extra help at CTU for a while…with Tactical or Field Ops I'm just doing nothing and I'm kinda going crazy already so…"

"You'd need clearance."

"I have clearance." Rick reminded. "I probably have a higher level of clearance than you do."

"We'd need to get someone to authorize it…"

"Well hey, if it's too much hassle, don't bother but…I mean I'm good at this stuff, Tony. I could help."

"Yeah…" Tony bit his lip as it occurred to him that if all went as planned they'd be short one Head of Field Ops and his partner in a few weeks time. "I just dunno if us working together would be the best idea…"

"Tony…" Rick looked at him seriously. "I know we don't agree all the time but I'm a professional. It would work. We could try it for a while and if not…I mean Bauer's going to Mexico soon right - ?"

"How the hell did you know that?"

Rick shrugged. "I told you. I have clearance. I did my research."

Tony scowled a little. "I'll talk to Chappelle this week Alright?"

* * *

On Jack and Chase's final day at CTU before Mexico, Tony and Jack spent the entire afternoon in the Conference going over specifics again and again. Once they'd crossed the border, there wouldn't be much, if any, regular contact and they needed to make sure all the bases were covered. After the initial contact the plan was to more or less remain in Mexico as it was likely the Salazars had access to information on border crossings and would be monitoring it carefully. If Jack was constantly going back into the States they could become suspicious.

It was mid-November.

"So uh…what'd you tell Kate?" Tony stated as five-o-clock drew nearer.

Jack looked slightly surprised at the question. He shrugged.

"That I was going away for work, didn't know how long I'd be and I couldn't say anything else."

"And she was okay with that?"

Again, Jack shrugged. "I guess she understood what I meant. She's been a little quiet these last few days so I'm hoping she might…I mean it's not like I want to leave her, or Kim. We're supposed to have dinner tonight. They'll be fine…Kim's older now and she's busy with school and they have each other."

He sounded a lot more sure of this than he actually felt.

"I haven't left Kim since Teri." Jack lowered his eyes. Tony nodded sympathetically.

"Look, you're not gonna be gone forever. Kate'll be around and you'll get to come back in a couple of months and if anything serious happens - "

"You may or may not be able to get in touch with me." Jack finished flatly.

"If anything serious happens we'll find a way to get in touch with you….even if I have to drive down there myself. Alright?"

Jack sighed. "Yeah, okay."

"So, Chase is ready?"

"Yes." Jack nodded firmly. "He's a good kid. He'll be fine. I told Michelle she's got a good eye."

Tony laughed a little. "I'm sure she appreciated that."

A small grin played across Jack's lips.

"Rick's coming in tomorrow?"

"Yeah. It shouldn't take him too long to get the hang of everything."

"He knows what he's doing." Jack insisted easily. "I wouldn't worry too much."

As they rose from their chairs, gathering up a few papers, Tony turned to Jack.

"You need anything before you leave in the morning, call me alright?"

"Yeah. Thanks Tony."

"Yeah…" Tony scratched the back of his neck and glanced at the ground. "Listen Jack, take care of yourself down there, okay?"

"I will." The clasped hands briefly as they stepped outside the Conference room doors. As he started to walk away Jack mumbled a brief "I'll be in touch," before disappearing completely from sight.

He bumped into Michelle on her way out of IT.

"You're going?"

He nodded and Michelle hesitated for a second before touching his arm gently and leaning in a little.

"Be careful, Jack." She told him softly.

He smiled slightly. "Thanks."


	16. Disenchanted

Chapter Sixteen – Disenchanted

**A/N: **_Hey guys! I'm so so so so sooooooooo sorry it's taken me this long to update. That wasn't the plan, I swear. Thank you so much to those who are still with me! I really appreciate all the reviews everyone has been leaving. _

_I'm still not entirely thrilled with this chapter but I'm posting because I don't think it's going to get much better without rewriting the whole thing. I'm right in the middle of exams now so no idea of when the next one will be up (not another 2.5 months though, promise ____) and then for summer I'm thinking of doing something a little different. Normally I don't write during the summer but I have something more or less already written that I MAY be posting that's very different in terms of style from anything I've ever done before. Just as a heads up… _

_Thanks again for reading!_

"Hey…" Rick rapped lightly on the glass of his brother's office and poked his head inside. Tony, who had the phone cradled between his chin and his shoulder, motioned him inside and held up a finger briefly before returning to his conversation.

"Yeah Ryan. I'm briefing everyone in 10 minutes on the new developments and we should have something for you by the end of the - "

"You really think that's practical?" Tony raised an eyebrow to the phone. As Ryan Chappelle's voice droned on about something that was completely irrelevant at that moment in time, but he seemed to think needed addressing. Tony glanced at Rick and offered a slight eye roll.

"Uh huh…" he mumbled finally. "Yeah. I'll keep you posted. Okay."

"What's up?" Tony said after he'd placed the phone back on his desk.

"I'm finished with Baker. He gave me the rundown on everything. Nice guy…"

"Good. We've got an active protocol. There's a briefing in the Conference room in ten."

"Alright, you want me to let everyone know?"

"I sent a message over the server. Just be there."

Rick groaned exasperatedly as he turned to leave.

"Yeah, yeah."

As Rick descended down the staircase he glanced around the bullpen. Since being introduced to the office officially that morning he'd been receiving more than a few looks. Chloe O'Brian wasn't happy with the arrangement and he already anticipated a few problems with her taking orders from him. Tom Baker had been decent enough, but upon entering the locker room that morning he'd gotten a lot of unimpressed stares. He wondered if it had anything to do with him being the same age as a lot of them. They didn't worry him. He knew by the end of his first operation any doubts on his ability to replace Jack Bauer would be assuaged.

Some of the analysts and Comm. didn't know what to make of him but with Michelle running the floor she was really the only reason he'd gone down there so far. She'd introduced him to Gael Ortega and they both insisted he let them know if he needed anything.

All he really needed was an operational objective and a hand gun and he'd be fine. He didn't manage people by befriending them or delegating or barking orders. He managed by example.

"Hey," she smiled brightly when he approached her station. Rick grinned.

"What's goin' on?"

"Division sent over some matrices that need to be reformatted for our systems." She explained without taking her eyes off the computer screen. She typed busily for a few seconds before turning her chair to face him completely.

"How are you?"

"I just thought I'd inform you personally that there's a meeting in the Conference room in ten…active protocol or something."

"Didn't Tony send out a memo?" she raised an eyebrow. Rick grinned.

"Well…I dunno about him but _I _think you deserve more than just a memo."

She laughed. "Flattery will get you nowhere. What do you want?"

Rick shifted his eyes slightly.

"Just uh…if you hear anything about me having drinks later with Kirsten in IT…disregard it…"

Michelle's eyes widened slightly. "You've been here less than a day!"

He shrugged innocently. "What can I say…I thought I was rusty but uh…guess not…"

"And I'm lying to Tony?"

"Not lying…" he insisted. "If he asks you flat out if I'm having drinks with someone from work then yes, tell him…just don't y'know…offer up the information."

Michelle rolled her eyes.

"So if we get out of here at a reasonable hour tonight, should I expect you home at all?"

"I don't do the sleepover thing." He brushed her off and she looked slightly taken aback.

"Seriously, Michelle. You don't even wanna know how long it's been…it'll just be one night and I promise I won't make a habit of sleeping with coworkers. Besides, she works in IT worse comes to worse I have to work with her directly once a week."

"And she knows it's only one night?"

"I just met her three hours ago…if she's thinking anything else that's not my problem…"

Michelle sighed heavily. "You can't keep doing this. It's not healthy…for them or you."

"Look after tonight…I'll give it a rest until I'm out of your place, okay? I promise."

She hesitated. What could she do really? "Okay…"

"Thanks. I owe ya."

* * *

"Alright, settle down. We got a lot to cover." Tony's voice resonated across the room just as Rick slipped into a chair directly across from Michelle at the end of the table closest to the bullpen. Tony did not sit down, instead he inclined his head towards Michelle who had her laptop open and was staring at the screen. A few seconds later a picture appeared on the large monitor of a man and woman wearing casual looking clothing. The woman had a pair of sunglasses on her forehead and both had bags at their feet.

"This is Douglas and Jenna Graham. They're American-born business owners with an independent consulting firm based out of Connecticut. They left last week for a meeting in England and landed in LAX this morning on a layover…"

Rick glanced up from the briefing packet Chloe O'Brian had handed him a minute before and snorted.

"Seems a little bit out of the way…"

Michelle nodded her agreement and continued.

"Incidentally, Jenna Graham's old classmate from business school, Ahmed Salam is suspected of involvement with a new terrorist group Langley's only been acquiring information on for the past few months. The CFO of their company, Larry Macri, also resides in LA and data on Salam's group suggests they received a rather large donation through some back channels."

A picture of Salam meeting with two dark figures clothed completely from head to toe appeared on the screen.

"LAPD is working out getting us a warrant but uh…that might not be in place when we make contact with the CFO. Our goal is to try and get him to cooperate because there's a good chance that him being that high up in the company he's well aware of any dealings with Salam. With the Graham's in LA at this point, we want to monitor them until we can get something concrete and then bring them in for questioning." Tony finished.

"Do we have any idea what Salam did with the money he received?" Gael asked, his fingers massaging the side of his face delicately.

"Langley's got people on him but so far, nothing." Michelle explained. "At this rate, our best bet is to bring in the Grahams."

"Rick, I want you to get Baker and a few guys for backup and get ready to go the company headquarters. Michelle's going with you in case Macri lets you pull stuff off the computer."

Rick stared at his brother for a second before nodding.

"Yeah…sure…I'll be ready in five."

"I'll meet you in Field Ops." Michelle stated as she too rose from her chair and went to change while Rick went to prep the team.

* * *

"Hey…" Tony caught Michelle on her way through the bullpen heading down to Field Ops.

She paused and looked at him expectantly. Things hadn't exactly been tense the last few days, but it was obvious there was something between them. Having Rick around had made things less uncomfortable, but it had also meant they hadn't been forced to resolve anything. Tony had been a little distant since his Nina-dream and he knew it, and made a promise to himself that he'd remedy it after today.

"Just uh…you're armed right?"

She nodded slightly. "Yeah, of course."

"Good." He nodded gruffly. "Stick with Rick, alright? When you go to meet with Macri…he might panic or something."

She inclined her head gently. "I will."

"Gael's running Comm."

"I know. I set him up a minute ago."

Tony looked a little embarrassed and clawed at the side of his face.

"Right."

Michelle smiled and touched his arm briefly.

"We'll see you in a bit."

" 'Kay."

* * *

"Alright Dessler, I know you're good at this computer crap, but when was the last time you were in the field?" Rick asked as he pulled the car onto the road. He and Michelle were riding in one vehicle while Baker had taken backup in another. He had sensed a slight discomfort on her part; something he would likely not have noticed did they not spend ample time together at home now.

She smiled at his attempt to lighten the mood. She'd been in the field several times in her career but she always got nervous every time she went. His relaxed attitude put her at ease and she also knew (even without having seen him in action) if she had to go into the field with someone, Rick Almeida probably made her top three.

"Maybe eight months ago." She shrugged it off. "But uh…don't worry, I don't need you to baby sit me."

Rick laughed. "I believe you…but in the event that something does happen I'll be in for the beating of my life so uh…don't be too offended if I keep an eye on ya while we're out there."

She laughed. "I'll try not to be."

Rick grinned and hesitated briefly before squeezing her shoulder.

"You're okay, right?"

"Oh yeah." She assured him. "I mean, I always get a little nervous with this kinda stuff because it's not like I do it everyday but…I'll be fine." She didn't feel silly admitting it to him for some reason. In fact, she felt a bit better.

"Well listen…" he glanced briefly over his shoulder as he changed lanes before turning back to Michelle. "This isn't gonna be a big deal and I know you've got field training and everything and you're probably some sort of superstar and are gonna make me feel like an idiot but just in case…" he lowered his voice for no apparent reason.

"I got you covered, alright?"

Michelle smiled, and said nothing.

* * *

"We're here to see Macri." Rick inquired in such a way Michelle had to contain a laugh. Here they were, ten feet away from the CFO of some prestigious company and formal titles still weren't in order. It was the kind of thing his brother would've done. Rick's arms folded across his chest. The young secretary blushed and tucked her hair behind her cheeks as his dark eyes hardened on her light hazel ones. Michelle almost groaned aloud. Even when he wasn't trying Rick got attention it seemed.

"Is he expecting you, sir?" she flashed a bright smile, leaning forward slightly.

"Our office called twenty minutes ago. We're with CTU-LA." He obviously wasn't drawn to her tastefully accented cleavage or strawberry blonde locks. At least not while on the job. Her pink mouth curved downward slightly into a frown. She hadn't even glanced at Michelle yet.

"Certainly, sir." She pressed a button on the intercom and announced their presence to the man in the other room. Macri's voice echoed asking them to be sent in.

The girl inclined her head towards the closed door.

"You can go on in."

Rick held out an arm, indicating for Michelle to lead the way before inclining his head briefly at the girl and mumbling a casual 'thanks'.

"Mr. Macri?" Michelle stated crisply as they stepped inside the office. It was a spacious room on the 15th floor of the building with a view of downtown LA. The late afternoon sun cast a warm glow over the dark furniture as a middle-aged man with clean features and a pleasant looking face rose to greet them. His brow was furrowed with concern as he stared between Michelle and Rick.

"I'm Agent Dessler." Michelle told him briefly as she placed her laptop on an empty chair and moved towards the center of the room.

"This is Agent Almeida."

Handshakes were exchanged and Macri offered them a seat. Michelle accepted, folding her legs neatly beneath as Rick slid into the one beside her, eyes still focused on Macri.

"Can I offer you anything to drink?" he directed the question at Michelle who declined. Rick said nothing still. This made Macri even more uneasy and he fidgeted a little, attempting to loosen his tie.

"So, tell me what I can do for you…"

Rick handed Michelle the briefcase which she placed firmly on Macri's desk, flipping it open to reveal a stack of files.

"I understand you work for the Graham's."

"That's right." Macri nodded politely. "For almost twelve years now. Your office said there was a problem…"

"When was the last time you saw either of them?"

Macri considered this for a second, before shrugging uncertainly.

"They spend most of their time on the East Coast. The last recollection I have is at the beginning of the summer quarter."

"And your firm deals with business consulting…"

"Yes. I've known Jenna since we did our Master's. When I was laid off years ago their business was just getting started and they recruited me."

"What kind of work do you do?" Rick finally spoke, his voice monotonous, almost bored.

Macri looked startled by the sound coming out of him, as though he hadn't realized Rick could speak

"I'm sorry?"

Rick glanced at Michelle in mock surprise. "Did you not understand the question?"

Macri's eyes narrowed. "I thought that'd been established. We're a consulting firm. Our goal is to help other businesses maximize their profit margins."

"What kinds of businesses?"

"Our list of clientele is private, Mr. Almeida. I'm sure you understand." Macri sounded defensive now. "If you have a warrant for that kind of information I'd be happy to provide with the appropriate documents."

The air of the room could've been cut with a knife, but Rick never flinched. Michelle glanced at him briefly before seizing the opportunity.

"Mr. Macri have you heard of Ahmed Salam?"

Macri looked surprised. "Yes. He was at school with Jenna and I. We rented a house together our last year."

"Are you aware of any transactions happening between your firm and Mr. Salam?"

"None whatsoever. Jenna and I haven't spoken to Ahmed in years. He left the country."

"Do you know where he went?"

"Ireland, for work. He has no family in the country so traveling was never an issue for him."

"Where's he from?"

"Somewhere in the Middle East. Dubai maybe? Or Lebanon. I can never remember…I do know his family was all over the place."

"And to your knowledge this firm never sent him any money?"

"No." he stated firmly. "I'm the CFO of this company Ms. Dessler. If anything of substantial monetary value exchanged hands, I would know."

"I'm sure you would…" Rick muttered under his breath so only Michelle managed to catch what he had said. She glanced at him sideways and he nudged his head back towards the door.

"Can I see you for a minute?"

Michelle glanced at Macri and excused them as she followed Rick into the hallway. They spoke softly immediately outside the door of the office, leaving nothing to chance.

Rick almost laughed bitterly as soon as they were alone.

"That guy just threw himself under the bus…"

Michelle bit her lip. "Is it at all possible he really doesn't know about the money to Salam."

Rick looked surprised. "Michelle…" he stated flatly. "You heard him. He's Mr. Big-shot CFO and any money that changes hands he's gonna know about. His prints are all over this. If the Grahams were out of the country he probably made the transfer overseas himself. Besides, he's got some connection with both Jenna and Salam. There's no way he didn't know."

Michelle nodded. It all added up. Of course Macri would've known more than he was telling them. He was nothing more than well-rehearsed in avoiding trouble. Michelle lowered her voice slightly and inclined her body towards Rick.

"How do you want to proceed?"

Rick glanced briefly over his shoulder to make sure the secretary wasn't watching them before asking for Macri's file.

"Four years in the army after high school…ten months stationed in the South Pacific…then he went to college." Rick snorted. "He'll break in twenty minutes."

Michelle stared as Rick snapped the file shut.

"Macri spent a few years in the army and has been sitting behind a desk for the last fifteen…he's cocky. He thinks he can handle whatever we throw at him. He won't psych himself out for an interrogation because he doesn't think we're allowed to push him that hard and we're underestimating him… He'll hold out without saying a word for maybe…uh…" he considered this. "I'm gonna say ten minutes and then it's just gonna keep getting worse and the first sound that comes out of his mouth is gonna be the confession… that's a guarantee, Dessler."

Michelle turned her body towards him. "What do you want me to do?"

"Just back me up…if he gets desperate and tries to make a break for it take him out."

"Alright." Michelle reached for the door. "Lead the way."

Rick walked in lazily, surveying the spacious office for a few seconds. Larry Macri watched him intently.

"Well?" he snapped. "I'm a busy man. I don't have time for games."

Rick fought to contain an eye roll as he watched Michelle click the lock on the door shut. Macri's face tensed. Michelle just watched, her expression neutral.

Rick considered his options for a moment before approaching the desk and lifting the phone off the receiver. He studied it and then ripped the entire thing out of the jack in one fell swoop, dropping it back on the desk with a clatter.

"What the hell is your problem?!" Macri roared. "What gives you the right to deface my company's propert - "

"Sit down, Larry." Rick snarled without even glancing in the man's direction. He kicked the large swivel chair towards him and folded his arms as he waited. Macri didn't move. Rick sighed before reaching out with a single hand and throwing the Macri into the chair as though he were nothing more than a rag doll. As Macri gasped for breath Rick fished a pair of handcuffs out of his back pocket and slapped them around of Macri's wrists and the arm of the chair.

"This is illegal!" Macri exclaimed furiously. "What are you gonna do? Beat a confession out of me? Anything I say under duress won't hold up in court anyway…"

Rick laughed harshly. "I couldn't care less if it holds up in court as long as you tell me what I need to know."

Macri stared at him with bewilderment.

"Hey Michelle," Rick called over his shoulder. "How long do you think it'll take you to hack into the computer?"

"I'll have to check out the system…"

Rick turned the laptop to face the other side of the desk and Michelle stepped in front of it, sitting down in the chair she had been in before.

"Do what you can."

"Sure."

"Alright Larry," Rick turned back around. "Agent Dessler is gonna access the files in your computer that show the money transfer from your company to Salam…" he crouched down. "So level with me…you're a busy guy and I'm a busy guy and I'm sure you've got some pretty fancy protection on your personal computer for just these kinds of circumstances that _we will_ get through sooner or later… So while we're waiting for that to happen you and I are gonna see how we can be more productive…"

"Go to hell." Macri hissed.

"Why don't you just tell Agent Dessler how to access the files, show us the transfer and you can walk away from this whole thing without a scratch on you?"

Macri ignored him and Rick sighed disappointedly. He pulled Macri's blazer off the desk and wrapped it tightly over his mouth, gagging him. He then rose and took his time screwing the silencer on his pistol.

"How ya doin' there Michelle?" he called over his shoulder as he gave one final twist before snapping the clip loudly into place. Macri was sweating already.

Michelle bit her lip slightly.

"There's a pretty advanced encryption here. It could take a while."

"Can you interface with CTU? Get some help?"

"I'm calling now."

Rick waited until Michelle was off the phone and online with Chloe before he spun around and wordlessly fired a bullet directly into Macri's foot. Macri screamed in pain but it was muted by the gag. Michelle flinched, and her eyes wandered from the computer screen only for a second before she returned to her work.

"What do ya think?" Rick pulled the gag down. "Worth keeping your mouth shut?"

Macri moaned in pain.

"Y'know I can have a medic up here in five minutes…if you give us something concrete showing this company behind the transfer to Salam's account."

Macri continued to moan and the gag was returned to its original place. Rick cross the room towards Michelle and leaned over her.

"How we doing?" he asked quietly.

"Not good. No one's ever seen anything like this. It could take hours…days…he couldn't have done this himself…"

Rick glanced briefly at Macri who was pasty white. A small pool of blood was forming beneath his shoe and he groaned in agony.

"Alright…do what you can. He'll break soon."

* * *

"Hey Larry, how ya doin'?" Rick practically taunted, clasping him briefly on the shoulder. "Next time it won't be your foot…I can promise you that. Feel like helping us out yet?"

Rick was oblivious to the fact that Michelle's typing had increased in frequently at what was practically an alarming rate. Her fingers flew so fast across the keyboard they may as well as been a blur to anyone watching. Rick had just raised his gun level with the man's kneecap when she called out.

"What?!"

"I'm in. We solved the decryption."

Rick practically leapt over the desk towards her.

"Have you found anything?"

It was less than five minutes before Michelle pulled up the file they were looking for: documentation of an exchange in the excess of 300,000 US to an offshore account that Chloe and Gael had already traced back to Salam. Rick squeezed Michelle's shoulder warmly as she sent a copy of the file over to CTU before snapping the laptop shut. He flipped open his phone and dialed Baker.

"Larry, make sure you thank Agent Dessler before the medic brings you out of here…" Rick drawled sarcastically. "She just saved you a world of pain."

An almost unconscious Larry Macri was carried down to an ambulance on a stretcher as a very distraught looking receptionist watched. Baker's team secured the office and withdrew a few miscellaneous pieces of potential evidence as Rick called CTU to inform LAPD to pick up their main suspects.

* * *

Just as Rick was pulling their car into the parking garage, Tony was stepping through the doors of CTU to meet them.

"Chappelle just called." He explained as his brother and Michelle approached him. "Division was with LAPD when they apprehended the Grahams. They're being transported now for questioning."

Rick frowned. "We're not interrogating them?"

Tony shook his head. "Chappelle wants to do it."

"What about Macri?" Michelle pushed a stray piece of hair behind her ear. It felt like she'd been working for a lot longer than 10 hours.

"He's still at Cedars. Security is on the doors. As soon as they're done treating him we'll send someone in to ask him a few more questions but uh…I think he's given us pretty much everything valuable."

Both Rick and Michelle nodded simultaneously and Tony bit his lip before speaking.

"You guys did good." He declared softly.

Rick smiled a little and smacked Michelle affectionately on the back.

"I didn't do much." He commented wryly, shrugging his shoulders.

Nothing was said for a few seconds. Michelle felt Tony's eyes land on her before shifting back to Rick, who apparently knew how to take a hint.

"I'm uh…gonna go get cleaned up. I'll see you guys inside."

Michelle smiled after he had disappeared and inclined her head towards the doors.

"We should probably head in too…" her move to take a step was halted by a hand on her elbow.

"Hang on a sec." Tony pulled her back in front of him. He studied her carefully before letting out a deep sigh.

"Listen, I know things have been a little…" he ran his fingers through his hair with his free hand. "I mean I know I have been a little out of it lately - "

"It doesn't matter, honey - "

"Yeah, it does." He brought both hands to her cheeks. "Just uh…seeing that thing about Nina before kinda bothered me I guess."

"I had a feeling." One side of her mouth twitched. "I know you pretty well by now."

Tony smirked back and nodded.

"I should've said something anyway."

"It doesn't matter." She repeated. "It's just one of those things that will always be around on some level…we both know that."

He nodded slowly as he wrapped a hand around the back of her head and drew her mouth towards his.

"I love you." He muttered as he pulled away, lips still inches from hers. She grinned and moved in for her own quick kiss.

"I love you too."

* * *

"Kristen?" he waited for the response on the other end. "Hey, it's Rick…Almeida. I dunno if you were still thinking about grabbing that drink tonight but uh, I still got a lot of stuff to take care of over here so it doesn't look like I'm gonna be able to make it…"

He listened to her bubbly response.

"Yeah. Sure. Maybe another time." He brushed her off.

"Have a good night."

He snapped the phone shut and was surprised to feel a wave of relief wash over him. Maybe he was just tired, maybe he was getting older, or maybe he just really didn't feel like ruining all the progress he and Tony had made over the last few weeks. Either way, drinks with Kirsten didn't seem so appealing anymore.


End file.
